April Reading

Vicious and Vengeful by V.E. Schwab

Two collge boys meet, discover a way to have a near death experience, which then turns them into ExtraOrdinary people. Sounds like a comic book, right? And that's a bit how these two books read for me. Since reading Schwab's latest hit, The Invisible Life of Addie Larue, I have voraciously read her backlist books: Darker Shades of Magic series (5-star!) and now this duology. I liked these, but didn't love them. Why? Well, let's just say I often asked myself what dark creatures live permanently inside V.E.'s brain. I mean, Shades was pretty dark, but these two books give a whole new meaning to the word. Lots of killing, and I mean LOTS. Some cool characters, definitely page turners, and uniquely creative, but the main characters are soul-less (for a reason, which makes sense), but it makes them less likely to find a way to root for or against them. Worth my time? For sure. Unforgettable? Absolutely. But be prepared for some messed up shit.

The Arsonists' City by Hala Alyan

This book had all the potential to be a hit with me, yet sadly it just missed the open target. A family drama involving Syrian and Lebanese cultures, a secretive parental past, three diametrically different siblings, and a house in Beirut. Perfect mix, right?! But I finished the final page just feeling meh. It’s loooooong, as in almost 500 pages. Every time I got interested in one person’s story, it turned to someone else. I couldn’t muster enough interest to cheer for or against any of the characters. And I didn’t learn anything about the historical background that created the century-long issues, which was one of my goals. I loved her first novel 𝘚𝘢𝘭𝘵 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘴, and I know others have loved this one - just not for me, or just rotten timing in my life.

A Million Reasons Why by Jessica Strawser

A gift of DNA testing for the entire family - sounds fun, right? Learn where your ancestors came from, who you might be connected to, etc. etc. etc. Unless, of course, there's a secret illegitimate child in one's past. That's the premise of this well-written, family drama, where parents, children, friends all carry their past decisions heavy in their hearts. Strawser does a masterful job of developing her main characters, the two sisters Sela and Caroline, one who is single with a chronic disease, and one who juggles job, kids, and marriage. With that said, it's just not my typical go-to type of story, people with all-white characters who have no money struggles, who have easy access to medical care, who have a support network of friends and family. I wondered, at times, if the story could have found more depth throwing some of these issues in? But if you are drawn into deep, rich family dramas, with some predictability,  this book satisfies.

The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth

I'm a sucker for a good accent with an audio book - this one delivers with a story set in Melbourne, Australia. It's a twisty thriller, a bit predictable, but honestly, I just didn't care as I wanted to listen obsessively. It involves two sisters, Rose and Fern - Rose is controlling, Fern has sensory deficit disorder. As the story spins out their past history, as well as their present life issues surrounding love life, babies, jobs, it all gets reeeeeeal interesting. Looking for a brainless page turner? This one will do it!

A Court of Silver Flames (ACOTAR #4) by Sarah J. Maas

I have laughingly called A Court of Thorns and Roses fantasy series "Fairy Porn" for the last few years, cause it is. As in, we had to move it OUT of the YA section in the bookstore - like, yikes, these fairies have very active sex lives! But what Maas does as far as world-building is pretty terrific; she is a master of the genre. I didn't love this book quite as much as the previous three books, as the main lead, Nesta, is not my favorite. Yet she did grow on me. What I did love is how Maas used the trauma of the female characters to show a way out of their past and their pain, through hard physical exercise, by building their bodies to be able to not only defend themselves, but to become the aggressors. That was cool. 

Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World AND Notes on a Nervous Planet by Matt

Haig

Screen Time...it can be a deep dark rabbit hole, can’t it?! 𝘋𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘮 gave me new eyes with which to view my phone and 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘢 𝘕𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘵 reminded me that life is messy - that I need to be ready for it to throw me around a little but to stay engaged with the people I love not the technology that can be so damn enticing. During 2020, it just became easier and easier to put my nose in my phone since life had come to a stand still, but these two books helped me to figure out where the value is and to stick with that. No, I didn’t do the 30 day cleanse, but here’s what I did do: 1) Got rid of all my news apps on my phone. Now that idiot man isn’t in the Oval anymore, I don’t need to constantly check to see what area of America he set on fire. Joe’s in charge and I’m good. 2) I set screen time limits. 3) I validated my reasons for not engaging with FB or Twitter - they’re so addictive in a very poisonous way for me 4) I acknowledge what I get from IG - great book recs and some meaningful friendships. And that’s not nothing! But I’ve halved my screen time per week, as I slowly step back into life as a fully vaccinated human.