April Reading Wrap-Up

Another month has come and gone in the blink of an eye. This was a great reading month, with plenty of historical romance to cure the ache left after binging season 2 of Bridgerton in one weekend. With six books and 2200 pages under my belt this month, it felt great to get out of the reading slump I was in during March. I hope you enjoy my reviews, and as always, please remember to take each one with a grain of salt, because what works for me might not work for you and vice versa. All links will take you to bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores across the nation. See you in May!

“The Duke and I” by Julia Quinn

Genre: Historical Romance

Rating: Three Stars

Anyone else go on a bit of a Bridgerton bender with the release of Season Two? I’ll be the first to admit, I found the first season incredibly boring and wanted to see if the book was any better. Spoiler alert… It was also pretty boring. Daphne’s entire personality is wanting to get married. I did like how Simon’s stutter was focused on a bit more in the book and how he still had to overcome it in moments of intense emotion as an adult. It was a pretty true book-to-TV adaptation with enough steam and fun secondary characters (Violet Bridgerton is truly the shining star of these books) to keep me engaged.

“The Viscount Who Loved Me” by Julia Quinn

Genre: Historical Romance

Rating: Five Stars

Just as in the show, Kate and Anthony are the far superior couple. The enemies-to-lovers arc is intriguing and the banter between the Viscount and the prospective spinster is gold. While the show deviated pretty significantly from the book, I think the changes they made to showcase the Sharma sisters were brilliant and much needed in historical romance. The book version of Kate and Anthony’s story is full of moments that showcase Anthony’s caring, paternal side, as well as the true torment his father’s death has had him under for the last ten years of his life. While I would have loved to see the storyline of Kate’s fear of storms (and how Anthony comforts her through them) on the show, I thought the show captured the essence of their characters so well. The writing felt stronger in this second installment, as well as the depth of the characters and the family dynamics. Truly loved reading this, and equally loved the second season of the show.

“Home Work: A Memoir of My Hollywood Years” by Julie Andrews

Genre: Memoir

Rating: Four stars

Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music were two very formative films for me during my childhood. I’ve always admired Julie Andrews’ grace and poise and pure talent, so getting to read about her time on film was such a beautiful experience. Starting from her casting as Mary Poppins, Andrews walks us through her life, the good, the bad, and the ugly. She details the challenges she faced balancing her career and her family, as well as the imposter syndrome she faced throughout her career. I loved her candid discussion of the impact of therapy on her life during these years, as well as her desire to not shy away from the challenges she faced in her personal life. This memoir reads like a casual story being told over tea. There’s not an immense amount of reflection, she doesn’t shy away from the reality of her situation, and her calm and collected voice shines through the entire book. I truly adored this backstage look at the films and the actress who impacted me so much.

“Hook, Line, and Sinker” by Tessa Bailey

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Rating: Three Stars

This second installment of Bailey’s Bellinger Sisters series takes us back to Westport and into the friendship between Hannah, a PA struggling to make her own voice in the world and the entertainment industry, and Fox, king crab fisherman and certified ladies’ man. I wanted to love this book and the friends to lovers premise, but overall, it fell a little flat. There was very little plot and a lot of introspection into why Fox thinks he can never settle down. I think the story would have been more effective if it spent more time in the seven months that Hannah and Fox spent texting in between her two stays in Westport. I wanted to see more of how they had started making each other want more out of their lives. The ending put a lovely bow on the series, but overall, I was left wanting so much more.

“The Turn of the Key” by Ruth Ware

Genre: Suspense

Rating: Four Stars

This story follows Rowan, who has taken a job as a live-in nanny for a family living in the remote areas of the Scottish highlands. The pay is great and the benefits are unheard of, but when Rowan arrives, she learns that the family has been through four nannies in less than a year. As Rowan settles into her new role, she starts hearing things. The smart house technology starts to trip out a bit. And more things become unexplained as she tries to care for the Elincourt children. Ruth Ware knows what she’s doing when it comes to suspense. The twists in this book didn’t feel as crazy as other thrillers, but I was still left with plenty to process by the end of this story.

“A Rogue of One’s Own” by Evie Dunmore

Genre: Historical Romance

Rating: Four Stars

Lucie is working on the front lines of the 19th century British suffragist movement. Tristan Ballentine is the rake she’s known since she was a teenager who bursts back on the scene with a war medal and a talent for romantic poetry, sweeping the city off its feet. As Lucie and Tristan become business partners, long-ignored feelings bubble to the surface and their partnership is soon taken behind closed doors in clandestine meetings. Lucie soon learns that mixing business with pleasure is messy business and has to reckon with how her feelings affect her ability to forward the Cause. I really enjoy Evie Dunmore’s writing and appreciate the depth of her stories and characters. This series of romance focuses a lot on the politics of suffrage and intensely patriarchal societies. There is still plenty of steam and bodice-ripping as one expects in historical romance, making for a very dynamic read.