APR WRAP UP | The Books & the Stats

WELCOME to Imi hit a book slump at the end of March and couldn’t catch up with herself. This is a love letter to my book slump and how much I hate her, BUT let’s also consider the positives here. I am still doing wrap ups. It’s the fifth month of the year and I am still here. While April was not good for reading, or blog posts, the fact still remains that I’m coming back and I am still determined to continue making this better. I also have 28975982759 blog post ideas, what I lack is the time to write them.

Shout out to Lauren / Siz/ Provider of Doggo Pics / Personal PA and Nag for forcing me reminding me to write this post. This one is for you.

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon ★★★★★

Adult Fantasy [GR | BUY]

I finished my audiobook reread of my favourite book in the world! It was equally as brilliant the second time around, although the audiobook was created so quickly that they didn’t consult SaySha about pronunciation and accents and it was … dodgy. The story, however, is still 11/10.

If you want to read my full, spoiler-free review of this incredible book, click here.

Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of Orïsha #1) by
Tomi Adeyemi
★★½ [DNF @ p.361]

YA Fantasy [GR | BUY]

So this book has brilliant diversity and it was an incredible step for the publishing industry, especially in terms of both own voices cultural diversity and more diverse and own voices fantasy specifically. However, I spent the majority of this book, not bored, but not enthralled either. It has the same plot as any other YA fantasy with very little new and exciting twists and turns. Honestly, PoC deserve better than a generic YA fantasy rewritten with a black cast.

The Devouring Gray (The Devouring Gray #1) by Christine Lynn Herman
★★★★

YA Paranormal Fantasy [GR | BUY]

I really enjoyed this spooky little novel. It gave me serious Riverdale come Stranger Things vibes and I loved the characters. There’s some great bi rep, especially considering there are no actual relationships in this book, but a lot of foundations have been set for the next.

Also, Christine is going to be at YALC this year so I’m super excited to meet her and talk disaster bisexuals!

The Steel Prince (Shades of Magic #1) by V. E. Schwab & Andrea Olimpieri
★★★★½

Adult Fantasy [GR | BUY]

I have been waiting patiently for the volume one bind-up of this to release since the first comic published last year and I am so happy to have finally read it. This is a graphic novel series set in the Shades of Magic world, following Maxim, Rhy’s father, in his youth.

I adored the art in this and I am so excited to dive back into this world and explore some more but from a different angle and new characters.

Other Words For Smoke by Sarah Maria Griffin
★★★★½

YA Paranormal Horror [GR | BUY]

I was so up and down with this which is partially to do with the fact that it is a huge favourite of one of my closest friends. However, despite my slight disconnect, I have to commend the book on being incredibly intriguing and intelligent while also creating an unsettling atmosphere throughout. This book is part-horror, part-fantasy and casts disquiet on the reader, which is an amazing ability from Griffin.

Small Spaces (Small Spaces #1) by
Katherine Arden
★★★★

MG Paranormal Horror [GR | BUY]

This was another audiobook read for me and I zipped through it in less than a day. It was a really enjoyable MG with spooky elements and a fantastical, paranormal adventure. I would liken this a lot to Schwab’s City of Ghosts and it’s the kind of book that I would recommend for all of the children in my family.

The Words That Fly Between Us by Sarah Carroll
★★★★

MG Contemporary [GR | BUY]

I requested this ARC very early on in the year purely because the proof cover was incredibly beautiful, and then Simon & Schuster asked me to be on the blog tour so I finally got around to it at the end of the month. This middle grade contemporary actually surprised me with its intelligent portrayal of abuse of power in both families and friendships, and would be an accessible and important book for readers of any age.

For my full spoiler-free review, click here.

2019 Reading Challenge	Goal	Actual
January	7	12
February	14	21
March	21	30
April	28	37

The below charts are taken from my reading spreadsheet, created annually by Brock Roberts.

2019 Reading Aims	Goal	So Far
Backlist Must-Reads	12	1
Friend Recommendations	10	0
Graphic Novels	6	2
Pre-1995 Books	6	1
Male protagonist / author	25	7

How did your April go? If you posted a wrap-up, link me in the comments!

---

If you like my content, please consider supporting me elsewhere
TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | GOODREADS | BUY ME A COFFEE | WISHLIST