April was definitely a strange month which led to me getting a lot of reading done. I read a total of 31 books which amounted to 8314 pages read and 38 hours listened. It’s no surprise considering i’m currently furloughed from work and don’t have much else to occupy my time, and reading is always a favourite hobby of mine, but i’m definitely happy with how much I got read although i’m even more so with how much I enjoyed the books I read.
I read seven 5 star books this past month, the first of which was The Sandman – my first read of the month and a total win! I read both this one and Stalker, which are the fourth and fifth books in Lars Kepler’s bestselling Joona Linna series and these were my favourites of the series so far. This is such a wonderful crime series that follows one of my favourite fictional detectives and I can’t wait to get to the next one in the series.
Next up was Unbelievable – a true crime, non-fiction novel that is the basis of the Netflix limited series. Unbelievable is a book that was hard to read times as what happens to Marie is so incredibly maddening and disappointing. This book was so well-written and you could tell how much work the authors put into their research of not only Marie’s case but also rape cases in general and how they’re handled. A must read!
Girl Gone Viral is the follow up to The Right Swipe – a romance I adored last year – so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this one and it didn’t disappoint. Alisha Rai is an author I only discovered last year and she’s quickly becoming one of my favourites. This one has great mental health rep, as well as a diverse cast of characters and a beautiful, realistic friends-to-lovers romance which makes it an easy recommendation for anyone after a romance novel with a bit more depth.
My next 5 star book came from an author who is always a 5 star read for me and that’s Talia Hibbert. Mating the Huntress is a paranormal romance novella that had me laughing and swooning. This novella has two of my favourite MC’s; Luke is a werewolf who is adorably socially awkward whilst Chastity is an intelligent and self-assured woman who just wants to prove herself to her family but her time spent with Luke never ends up going quite as planned. This one might only be novella length but it’s definitely not lacking in any way.
Cujo by Stephen King is a book I think we’ve all heard of – a horror novel following a rabid dog – and whilst I enjoy King’s novels this one was not one I had the highest hopes for as the synopsis didn’t hold too much appeal for me, but I was so wrong. This was a gripping, terrifying and deeply saddening novel that I found myself utterly enthralled by, and whilst part of me was eager to find out how it all ended another part of me was desperate not to find out. I’m surprised this doesn’t seem to be a more popular of King’s books as it was a definite win for me, and is one I won’t be forgetting anytime soon.
Black Summer is the follow up to The Puppet Show and the second book following detective Washington Poe. I was so taken by the first book in the series because of how wonderful the characters are, and Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw yet again make for a formidable team in this one! These books truly make for a sensational, page-turning and thrilling read – an absolute must read for any crime/thriller fans.
Here’s hoping my May reads may be anywhere near as good!
lucyreads 