Monthly Recap - April

I had quite a few middle-of-the-road ratings for my reads/listens this month, but also had a few really good ones.  Without further ado...here is my reads/listens for the Month of April.

๏ ๏ ๏ A Bookish Obsession Monthly Reading Re-Cap ๏ ๏ ๏

(Netgalley eARC) The Lovely and the Lost by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Highlights Include:

YA Contemporary

Rescue Dogs

Family Drama

Mystery

Finish Date:  04/03

☆2.5☆STARS - GRADE=D+

(Audiobook) Lifel1k3 by Jay Kristoff

Highlights Include:

Futuristic Techy

Dystopian

Bots Of All Types & Sizes 

Intense Action

Slight Romanov Retelling

Existentially Thought-Provoking

Finish Date:  04/05

☆5☆STARS - GRADE=A+

(Netgalley eARC) In the Shadow of the Spindrift House by Mira Grant

Highlights Include:

Novella

Teen Investigating

Nautical-Themed Paranormal

Creepy House

Poetic Writing

Finish Date:  04/08

☆4☆STARS - GRADE=B+

(Audiobook) See Me by Nicholas Sparks

Highlights Include:

Contemporary

Romance

Mystery

Suspense

My First Nicholas Sparks Book

Finish Date:  04/10

☆4.2☆STARS - GRADE=B+

(Audiobook) Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

Highlights Include:

Stand-Alone Full Length Story

Fantasy

Twisty Mystery

Romance

Character Growth

A Mix of Historical and Tech

Finish Date:  04/13

☆4.3☆STARS - GRADE=A-

(Audiobook) Drowning Instinct by Ilsa J Bick

Highlights Include:

Taboo Romance

Older YA

Psychological

Finish Date:  04/16

☆2.8☆STARS - GRADE=C-

(Netgalley eARC) The Escape Room by Megan Goldin

Highlights Include:

Locked-Room (Elevator) Mystery

Twisted Twisty-ness

Back & Forth Narrative

Corporate Finance

Finish Date:  04/17

☆4.5☆STARS - GRADE=A-

(Audiobook) Ever the Hunted by Erin Summerill

Highlights Include:

Magic

Fantasy

Cute, But Forgettable

Clean Romance

Finish Date:  04/21

☆3☆STARS - GRADE=C

(Audiobook) Come Find Me by Megan Miranda

Highlights Include:

Almost Like Stranger Things

Two Mysteries

Connections

Realistic Fiction

Splash of Romance

Splash of Science Fiction

Finish Date:  04/24

☆4.3☆STARS - GRADE=A-

(Audiobook) Lie To Me by J.T. Ellison

Highlights Include:

Separate Narrators for each POV
Mystery
Psychological Thriller
Questionable Plot Twists

Finish Date: 04/26
☆2.5☆STARS - GRADE=D+

(Audiobook) Heroine by Mindy McGinnis

Highlights Include:

The Slippery Slope of Addiction
High School Athlete
Graphic Drug Use
Bring on the Tears

Finish Date: 04/28
☆5☆STARS - GRADE=A+







11 Books total...8 of which were Audiobooks and 3 that are Netgalley eARC's (right now my netgalley average is 88%...woohoo).

Total # of Pages:  4,066 

...something weird I wanted to share...I read three different books this month with a page count of 336 and two of 352 pages.  I didn't read any that were 384...but I've read a total of 4 books, so far this year with that # of pages.  It's interesting how often certain page counts come up in my reading.

Best Cover for April goes too...I love Ever the Hunted, Four Dead Queens, and Drowning Instinct, but the artwork on this one has to be recognized:

Heroine by Mindy McGinnis

๏ ๏ ๏  Highlights ๏ ๏ ๏ 

The Slippery Slope of Addiction

High School Athlete
Graphic Drug Use
Bring on the Tears

๏ ๏ ๏ Links ๏ ๏ ๏

Goodreads | Booklikes | BookDigits

Amazon | Kobo | Scribd 

GooglePlay | IndieBound 

With Audio Performed by Brittany Pressley

๏ ๏ ๏  My Thoughts ๏ ๏ ๏ 

This isn't my first book about heroin addiction.  I've read a couple others, this one is just as hard-hitting and unflinching as those others, possibly more so, because it involves a girl not yet out of high school.  An athlete, with everything going for her.  Her downward spiral starts with a car accident and a horrible injury where she is prescribed Oxy, and so from there, her wretched descent begins...

I believe the purpose of this book is to make people, not only kids but adults too, aware of how easy it is to become dependent on these types of drugs, and almost anyone is susceptible to them, and to also make them aware of the signs that someone could be using.  This is fiction but it's based on real-life issues so it can be very blunt, which can make it really difficult to read/listen to at times...but ultimately, I believe it's worth it.

๏ ๏ ๏  MY RATING ๏ ๏ ๏ 

☆5☆STARS - GRADE=A+

๏ Breakdown of Ratings ๏ 

Plot⇝ 5/5
Narration Performance⇝ 5/5
Characters⇝ 4.5/5

The Feels⇝ 5+/5

Pacing⇝ 4.7/5

Addictiveness⇝ 5/5

Theme or Tone⇝ 5/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇝ 5/5

Backdrop (World Building)⇝ 5/5

Originality⇝ 5/5

Ending⇝ 5/5 

๏ ๏ ๏

Book Cover⇝ I thought the title was a mistake but it turns out, it was intentional...the cover is actually perfect for the story.

Setting⇝ Ohio

Source⇝ Audiobook (Library)
๏ ๏ ๏

Lie To Me by J.T. Ellison

๏ ๏ ๏  Highlights ๏ ๏ ๏

 

Separate Narrators for each POV

Mystery

Psychological Thriller
Questionable Plot Twists

With Narration Performed by Matthew Waterson, Saskia Maarleveld, Sarah Naughton & Julia Whelan

๏ ๏ ๏  My Thoughts ๏ ๏ ๏ 

This book tried to have these compelling plot twists that just came off as somewhat ridiculous and hard to swallow, especially towards the last third of the book.  I was sort of feeling things until that point, and it just went downhill after that.  It felt, to me, that she was going for shock factor more than anything else.  The narration was very decently done, without that, I probably would have been super angry that I wasted my time on the story at all.

๏ ๏ ๏  MY RATING ๏ ๏ ๏ 

☆2.5☆STARS - GRADE=D+

๏ Breakdown of Ratings ๏ 

Plot⇝ 2.7/5
Narration Performance⇝ 4.5/5

Main Characters⇝ 2/5

Secondary Characters⇝ 2.7/5

The Feels⇝ 3.5/5

Pacing⇝ 4/5

Addictiveness⇝ 4/5

Theme or Tone⇝ 3/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇝ 3.5/5

Backdrop (World Building)⇝ 4/5

Ending⇝ 2/5 Cliffhanger⇝ Nah...

๏ ๏ ๏

Book Cover⇝ Boring

Setting⇝ Kentucky

Source⇝ Audiobook (Library)
๏ ๏ ๏

Come Find Me by Megan Miranda

๏ ๏ ๏  Highlights ๏ ๏ ๏ 

Almost Like Stranger Things

Two Mysteries

Connections
Realistic Fiction
Splash of Romance
Splash of Science Fiction

๏ ๏ ๏ Links ๏ ๏ ๏

Goodreads | Booklikes | BookDigits

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes&Noble 

GooglePlay | IndieBound 

With Narration by Michael Crouch & Jorjeana Marie

๏ ๏ ๏  My Thoughts ๏ ๏ ๏ 

This starts out as, and hints at in the blurb/synopsis, that it's kind of like the show Stranger Things...and I think a lot of people thought it would be supernatural like that show.  This might be slightly spoilery...but I'm going to say it anyway.  This is not like Stranger Things.  Honestly, though, you find that out in the first third of the book, so not too spoilery.

Come Find Me is more of a YA Mystery mixed with Realistic Fiction. With a splash of romance, science fiction, and supernatural.  Although, it does drag in the middle a bit...on Audio, I found it hardly noticeable.   Both the narrators were quite exceptional.  Overall, I kinda liked it.

๏ ๏ ๏  MY RATING ๏ ๏ ๏ 

☆4.3☆STARS - GRADE=A-

๏ Breakdown of Ratings ๏ 

Plot⇝ 4.2/5
Narration Performance⇝ 5/5

Main Characters⇝ 4.3/5

Secondary Characters⇝ 4.2/5

The Feels⇝ 4.2/5

Pacing⇝ 4/5

Addictiveness⇝ 4.3/5

Theme or Tone⇝ 4.7/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇝ 4.3/5

Backdrop (World Building)⇝ 4.2/5

Originality⇝ 4.5/5

Ending⇝ 4.5/5 Cliffhanger⇝ Nope.

๏ ๏ ๏

Book Cover⇝ It's quite striking

Setting⇝ Virginia

Source⇝ Audiobook (Library)
๏ ๏ ๏

Ever the Hunted by Erin Summerill

Clash of the Kingdoms #1

๏ ๏ ๏  Highlights ๏ ๏ ๏ 

Magic

Fantasy

Cute, But Forgettable

Clean Romance

๏ ๏ ๏ Links ๏ ๏ ๏

Goodreads | Booklikes | BookDigits

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes&Noble 

GooglePlay | IndieBound 

With Audio Performed by Helen Johns

๏ ๏ ๏  My Thoughts ๏ ๏ ๏ 

The story did not live up to this gorgeous cover.  A winsome addition to YA Fantasy Trilogies already out there, that failed to fully capture my attention.  Maybe, cute and magical wasn't what I wanted to read right at the moment.  It's well written and the magic system was interesting, but the characters didn't really capture my attention.  This could have been due to the narration...I didn't really care for it, after all.  She was too mashed (like a mouth full of mashed potatoes) mouth for me to understand most of the time. 

๏ ๏ ๏  MY RATING ๏ ๏ ๏ 

☆3☆STARS - GRADE=C

๏ Breakdown of Ratings ๏ 

Plot⇝ 3.7/5
Narration Performance⇝ 2.5/5

Characters⇝ 2.3/5

The Feels⇝ 2.5/5

Pacing⇝ 2.7/5

Addictiveness⇝ 2.5/5

Theme or Tone⇝ 3/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇝ 3.8/5

Backdrop (World Building)⇝ 2.8/5

Originality⇝ 2.5/5

Ending⇝ 3.5/5 Cliffhanger⇝ Sort of...

๏ ๏ ๏

Book Cover⇝ Gorgeous...

Setting⇝ I honestly don't know...some kingdom somewhere...

Source⇝ Audiobook (Library)
๏ ๏ ๏

The Escape Room by Megan Goldin

๏ ๏ ๏  Highlights ๏ ๏ ๏ 

Locked-Room (Elevator) Mystery

Twisted Twisty-ness

Back & Forth Narrative

Corporate Finance

๏ ๏ ๏ Links ๏ ๏ ๏

Goodreads | Booklikes | BookDigits

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes&Noble 

GooglePlay | IndieBound 

๏ ๏ ๏  My Thoughts ๏ ๏ ๏ 

Set in the world of Investment Banking, the high stakes, cutthroat, "I'll step on you before you can step on me", kind of atmosphere.  Coupled with the mystery of an escape room challenge...made for a very interesting backdrop.  The story is told in alternating POV's between Sara Hall and the 4 people who have found themselves stuck in an elevator...that's supposed to be an escape room.  The question is...who put them there and why???  This story is not without its could-that-really-happen moments, but despite that, it's an indulging kind of Mystery/Thriller that I found quite entertaining.

I did have one issue...and it was with my advanced reader copy, it was, quite possibly the worse arc I've ever read before.  There was a ton of 1's and 0's, some of which had - or + in front of them, throughout the entire thing.  So flipping distracting.  Has anyone else ever had this with a kindle version of an arc?  I've had issues in the past with weird chapter breaks, but this was crazy they even had the numbers in between letters of a particular word.

๏ ๏ ๏  MY RATING ๏ ๏ ๏ 

☆4.5☆STARS - GRADE=A-

๏ Breakdown of Ratings ๏ 

Plot⇝ 4.5/5

Main Characters⇝  5/5

Secondary Characters⇝  4.5/5

The Feels⇝  4.3/5

Pacing⇝  4.3/5

Addictiveness⇝  4.3/5

Theme or Tone⇝  4.5/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇝  4/5

Backdrop (World Building)⇝  5/5

Originality⇝  5/5

Ending⇝  4.5/5 Cliffhanger⇝ Nope.

๏ ๏ ๏

Book Cover⇝ A little too much gold for me...

Setting⇝ New York mostly...

Source⇝ I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
๏ ๏ ๏

Drowning Instinct by Ilsa J Bick

๏ ๏ ๏  Highlights ๏ ๏ ๏ 

Taboo Romance

Older YA

Psychological

๏ ๏ ๏ Links ๏ ๏ ๏

Goodreads | Booklikes | BookDigits

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes&Noble 

GooglePlay | IndieBound 

With Audio Performed by Kathleen McInerney

๏ ๏ ๏  My Thoughts ๏ ๏ ๏ 

The cover and the narrator are the only recommendable aspects of this story...everything else is questionable...except maybe the ending.  I found the ending to be almost perfect, everything except for how they got there in the first place...

Overall, for me, the story has believability issues...so many aspects of the story just didn't sit well for me.   I'm surprised I gave it a chance at all...because teacher/student romance isn't really my thing...especially when dealing with high school age kids.  Just goes to show what an excellent cover can do for a story, at least for someone like me.

๏ ๏ ๏  MY RATING ๏ ๏ ๏ 

☆2.8☆STARS - GRADE=C-

๏ Breakdown of Ratings ๏ 

Plot⇝  2.5/5
Narration Performance⇝  4.5/5

Main Characters⇝  2.5/5

Secondary Characters  2/5

The Feels⇝  2.5/5

Pacing⇝  4/5

Addictiveness⇝  3.8/5

Theme or Tone⇝  2/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇝  3.5/5

Backdrop (World Building)⇝  4/5

Originality⇝  2/5

Ending⇝  4/5 Cliffhanger⇝ Nah...

๏ ๏ ๏

Book Cover⇝ Striking, love the color...

Setting⇝ Wisconsin near Lake Michigan

Source⇝ Own Audible Audiobook
๏ ๏ ๏

Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

๏ ๏ ๏  Highlights ๏ ๏ ๏ 

Stand-Alone Full Length Story

Fantasy
Twisty Mystery

Romance

Character Growth

A Mix of Historical and Tech

๏ ๏ ๏ Links ๏ ๏ ๏

Goodreads | Booklikes | BookDigits

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes&Noble 

GooglePlay | IndieBound 

With Audio Performed by Amy Shiels & Elizabeth Knowelden

๏ ๏ ๏  My Thoughts ๏ ๏ ๏ 

A fantasy stand-alone...not something you see too often...is it?  This is one of the reasons I really liked this.  The other is how compelling listenable I found this, with a mix of dystopian, fantasy and a splash of futuristic-techy thrown in.  I do love those sort of mixes.  Four Dead Queens is not without its flaws, but for the most part, I found them easily discountable.  Maybe, the MC, Keralie is a bit unlikable...but she does grow as a person.  And, also the world-building felt a tad incomplete overall, but still, easily dismissable.  The mystery was well articulated, at least for me it was.  Overall, an enjoyable story and one I recommend.

One of the narrators is the voice of Keralie (Amy Shiels), and the other is the voice of everyone else, including each of the four queens and a couple of others (Elizabeth Knowelden).  They were both pretty good and of course, I liked that the book had two different narrators.  For the story, this worked perfectly.

๏ ๏ ๏  MY RATING ๏ ๏ ๏ 

☆4.3☆STARS - GRADE=A-

๏ Breakdown of Ratings ๏ 

Plot⇝ 4.3/5
Narration Performance⇝  5/5

Main Characters⇝  4.5/5

Secondary Characters⇝  5/5

The Feels⇝  4.3/5

Pacing⇝  5/5

Addictiveness⇝  5/5

Theme or Tone⇝  4.2/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇝  4.7/5

Backdrop (World Building)⇝  4.3/5

Originality⇝  4/5

Ending⇝  4.7/5 Cliffhanger⇝ Nope!

๏ ๏ ๏

Book Cover⇝ Absolutely love it!

Setting⇝ Quadara

Source⇝ Audiobook (Library)
๏ ๏ ๏