Affiliate links appear in the following post. Although shopping the embedded links won’t cost you any additional dollars, it might mean that I download a few extra audio books this month. Your support of my reading habit is always appreciated!
Despite a slow start, I managed to get five books read this month. My “to read” list is growing exponentially, but I’m working slow and steady to cross them off. I know that come summer, I’ll read far more than one book a week, so as long as I continue to squeeze in 4-5 per month, I should stay right on track! I’ve gotten into a historical fiction funk, so you’ll see a few of those this month and (spoiler alert) a few more in April. I’ve also been thinking that I need to add a library card to my list of things to do. That’s right, I don’t even have a library membership despite my love for reading?! There is one a few blocks from my office, so I’m making it a goal in April to read more physical books and take few lunch-break walks to the library.
In case my previous reviews haven’t been clear, I’m adding this little rating system, courtesy of Goodreads.
1 star // did not like it
2 star // it was okay
3 star // liked it
4 star // really liked it
5 star // it was amazing
Warning: Affiliate links appear in the following post. Although shopping the embedded links won’t cost you any additional dollars, it might mean that I download a few extra audio books this month. Your support of my reading habit is always appreciated!
1&2. Envy & Splendor by Anna Godberson // 3.5 out of 5 stars
Since these two books are a part of the same series (and essentially the same book), I thought I’d review them collectively. These both thrilled and frustrated me equally. Some of the characters are so nasty, yet I found myself loving them and rooting for them even when I didn’t want to! Both Elizabeth and her sister Diana got the short end of the stick so many times throughout this series, but man I was hoping for their stories to end strong. Like in any historical romance, there were many ups and downs and every victory was quickly followed by a disaster of epic proportions. These aren’t serious literature by any stretch, but they are a fun read with lots of character development. Unless you just hate a love story, I’d definitely recommend these (you can read my reviews of the first two books in this series here).
3. Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan // 4 out of 5 stars
This is children’s fiction recommended for ages 10 and up, but I reside firmly in the camp of C.S. Lewis: “A children’s story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children’s story in the slightest.” Back in September, Ella had several birthday gift cards and we bought her a stack of new books to read. She picked most of them out herself, but I was intrigued by the cover of this one and after reading the synopsis, I encouraged her to make it one of her selections. She bought it, but only I after I promised to read it first. I’m embarrassed to say that it’s been on my bedside table ever since, but I read the entire thing sitting on the beach last weekend and it was so wonderful! The book is about Willow Chance, an elementary student who loses two sets of parents and loves to count things by seven. She is accompanied on a life-changing journey of personal discovery by a handful of perfect strangers who become the closest thing to family she has. I loved Holly Sloan’s writing style and the character development is perfect. If you prefer plot-driven novels this one might not be for you (not much actually happens), but the stories of how these characters intersect is just beautiful. The only reason I didn’t give this five stars is that I read something even better this month!
4. Unafraid by Francine Rivers // 3 out of 5 stars
Let me first say that I was extremely skeptical of this book. I’ve read two other books by Francine Rivers that I liked just fine, but I am usually not a fan of Christian fiction. I almost hate saying that out loud because I love to champion faith-based causes, but I feel like literature and movies made for believers are often hokey and hard to take seriously. I didn’t really even want to read this, but my mom read it while we were at the beach and handed it over when I flew through my first book with a few hours left in the day. It is pretty short and if you have an extra two hours, can absolutely be finished in a single sitting. The book is a fictional account of the the life of Mary, Jesus’ mother. It chronicles her life from her birth through the death of Jesus and gives voice to so many of the things she must have been experiencing. It is the fifth book in a series about women in Bible times. I haven’t read any of the other four, so it can certainly be read as a stand alone novella. I’ll admit, I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. It wasn’t my favorite book of the month, but I did enjoy thinking about Mary beyond the few verses we are given in the gospels and I loved that I was reading it during Holy Week!
5. Secrets of a Charmed Life by Susan Meissner // 5 out of 5 stars
This is one of those books that caught me completely by surprise. I had marked it to read last month, but when I saw it on Amber’s Instagram feed and happened to have an extra Audible credit last month, I downloaded it right away. If you’re paying attention you’ll notice I now own the paperback copy, as well. I loved it so much and really wanted my mom to read it, so when I couldn’t find it locally, I let Amazon Prime do its thing. Secrets of a Charmed Life is set during the London Blitz of 1940 and follows the lives of two sisters, Emmy and Julia. Emmy is fifteen and loves to draw wedding dresses. She has her heart set on an apprenticeship and dreams of dressing brides one day. Because of her fierce determination and some pretty crazy circumstances, she and her seven year old sister are separated after being evacuated to the English countryside. Most of the novel is a flashback from current day to different parts of Emmy’s story, but we do come full circle and hear where Julia was while London was falling apart. I didn’t know much about the evacuation of children during World War II, so even the historical parts were super interesting to me. Emmy was a wonderful storyteller and the narrator was LOVELY. There was a lot of chest clutching on my part and many, many tears during the last quarter of this book. I both wanted to hurry up and figure out how things would end and slow it down so I never had to stop reading. This is definitely my favorite book of the year, so far!
On my list for next month? All the Light We Cannot See, The Lake House, Room, Brooklyn, and Everything I Never Told You. What are YOU reading in April?
I’m linking up with The Modern Mrs. Darcy for Quick Lit.
P.S. I just signed up for the Book of the Month Club yesterday and it looks PRETTY amazing! For less than $10 a month, a panel of judges makes book selections and you get to choose one to receive in the mail. My first book has already shipped and I’m hoping it will be a part of next month’s review. Click the button below for details.
