Like the Comet

I won’t lie. I was on the struggle bus the entire month of April.

Especially when it came to sitting down to read. Almost all of the books I read were via audiobook because it was the only avenue I had the energy for. It was almost like every night I would get into bed with every intention to read one of the physical or ebooks I was working through, and instead I’d pass out.

Not to mention I was playing a lot of fucking sudoku for whatever reason lol. I just couldn’t stop. I’d grab my phone and say “just one more game before I start reading” and then one game would lead to the next, and it’d be too late for me to trade the phone for a book. So I’d just go to sleep instead.

There was also a pattern of being drawn to genres I don’t usually gravitate towards or, rather, avoiding romance novels more than usual. After going through a breakup in the second half of March, I wasn’t really in the mood to read about people’s HEA (happily ever afters) when my relationship recently ended.

So naturally mostly mystery/thrillers and a new fantasy series piqued my interest in April. There was SOME romance mixed in, but honestly, the books where romance was the main focus took me the longest to read.

ALSO side note to anyone who usually finds my monthly reviews through Facebook: I am currently locked out of my account lol. It’s a long story, but FB doesn’t offer customer support in human form. It’s all run by bots, so I’m STRUGGLING to get back in because the bots think I’m being suspicious when really, they’re just dumb. Which is why I haven’t posted my monthly reviews in a hot second, but I’m going to keep trying. *eyeroll*

Anyway, I digress. Let’s get into everything I read in April.

**All summaries are taken or paraphrased from Goodreads.

THE PARIS APARTMENT by Lucy Foley

Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary: Jess needs a fresh start. She’s broke and alone, and she’s just left her job under less than ideal circumstances. Her half-brother Ben didn’t sound thrilled when she asked if she could crash with him for a bit, but he didn’t say no, and surely everything will look better from Paris. Only when she shows up – to find a very nice apartment, could Ben really have afforded this? – he’s not there. The longer Ben stays missing, the more Jess starts to dig into her brother’s situation, and the more questions she has. Ben’s neighbors are an eclectic bunch, and not particularly friendly. Jess may have come to Paris to escape her past, but it’s starting to look like it’s Ben’s future that’s in question. The socialite – The nice guy – The alcoholic – The girl on the verge – The concierge. Everyone’s a neighbor. Everyone’s a suspect. And everyone knows something they’re not telling.

My Thoughts: I remember reading The Guest List a few years ago and thought it was fantastic because I did NOT see the plot twist coming in that one. The Paris Apartment was Lucy Foley’s next big book after The Guest List and I remember seeing mixed reviews right after it came out in 2022. I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this book, but I’m pleased to report it didn’t disappoint. The main character, Jess, is going to Paris to stay with her half-brother Ben after she runs into some trouble back in England. However, when she gets to his apartment, he’s nowhere to be found. It’s almost like he disappeared. Cue the hunt for Ben and a cast of various peculiar characters who are the tenants living in the same building. I liked that the format switched between POVs of all the characters because you truly didn’t know who you could trust. Even Jess’s character seemed a bit flaky and paranoid at times, even though she’s the one I was mainly rooting for. The plot twist in this book wasn’t AS shocking as The Guest List, but I definitely didn’t see it coming until it was fully spelled out for me. The narrator of this audiobook did a great job and if you’re looking for a quick mystery/thriller, I definitely recommend giving this one a try!

THE WRITING RETREAT by Julia Bartz

Rating: 2.5/5 stars

Summary: Five attendees are selected for a month-long writing retreat at the remote estate of Roza Vallo, the controversial high priestess of feminist horror. Alex, a struggling writer, is thrilled. Upon arrival, they discover they must complete an entire novel from scratch, and the best one will receive a seven-figure publishing deal. Alex’s long-extinguished dream now seems within reach. But then the women begin to die. Trapped, terrified yet still desperately writing, it is clear there is more than a publishing deal at stake at Blackbriar Estate. Alex must confront her own demons – and finish her novel – to save herself.

My Thoughts: Okay lol. So I don’t know the best way to explain my feelings about this book. Although I own a physical copy, I decided to listen to the audiobook and I’m really glad I did. I don’t know if I would’ve made it through had I chosen a different avenue. The writing, characters, plot, etc. in the first half of the book are ALL over the place. It was just pure chaos and the main character, Alex, seemed obsessed with some trivial things that I got annoyed hearing about. Once the story gets to the writing retreat, things KEEP getting weirder. Also, there were a few scenes that felt like they should’ve been scarier and ended up just kind of falling flat?? Then after I got through the mess that was the first half of the book, the second half finally started sorting itself out and the writing felt much more intentional. I wouldn’t say it got exponentially better, but there was an even flow to it, the characters started feeling more solid, and the plot finally started making sense. The plot twist wasn’t super surprising and although I wasn’t entirely satisfied with how it ended, I do think the book finished better than it started lol. Would I recommend this? Not necessarily. I wouldn’t consider myself a connoisseur of mystery/thrillers by any means, but even I know there are better books out there to read than this one.

BEYOND THE WAND by Tom Felton

Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary: Tom Felton’s adolescence was anything but ordinary. His early rise to fame in beloved films like The Borrowers catapulted him into the limelight, but nothing could prepare him for what was to come after he landed the iconic role of Draco Malfoy, the bleached blonde villain of the Harry Potter movies. For the next ten years, he was at the center of a huge pop culture phenomenon and yet, in between filming, he would go back to being a normal teenager trying to fit into a normal school. Speaking with great candor and his signature humor, Tom shares his experience growing up as part of the wizarding world while also trying to navigate the muggle world. He tells stories from his early days in the business like his first acting gig where he was mistaken for fellow blonde child actor Macaulay Culkin and his Harry Potter audition where, in a very Draco-like move, he fudged how well he knew the books the series was based on (not at all). He reflects on his experiences working with cinematic greats such as Alan Rickman, Sir Michael Gambon, Dame Maggie Smith, and Ralph Fiennes (including that awkward Voldemort hug). And, perhaps most poignantly, he discusses the lasting relationships he made over that decade of filming, including with Emma Watson, who started out as a pesky nine-year-old whom he mocked for not knowing what a boom mic was but who soon grew into one of his dearest friends. Then, of course, there are the highs and lows of fame and navigating life after such a momentous and life-changing experience.

My Thoughts: As a former Harry Potter fan, I was so excited to hear about Tom Felton’s experience growing up on the set of such an iconic movie franchise. Plus, I feel like Tom has always kind of been the overlooked actor who played such a staple character in the series, so this was me paying my respect to our favorite Slytherin boi. The audiobook is read by Tom which is so much fun because his Surrey accent truly sucks you into his incredibly entertaining anecdotes. It was really interesting to learn he lived a pretty down-to-earth lifestyle as a kid into his teens even as a child actor who had played in a number of popular movies outside of the Harry Potter films (ex: The Borrowers - circa 1997). I loved that he was a huge troublemaker on the set of Harry Potter and hearing about his relationship with all of the adult actors and actresses. It was cool to get a behind the scenes look at who those people are in real life. Although he had a lot of humorous tales to tell, he also shared vulnerable stories about his battle with addiction, hitting rock bottom, checking himself into rehab, etc. This memoir was well written and I loved that I got a taste of who Tom Felton truly is through this experience. If you were an HP fan or still are, I definitely recommend giving this book a listen!

THE HUNTRESS by Kate Quinn

Rating: 5/5 stars

Summary: Bold and fearless, Nina Markova always dreamed of flying. When the Nazis attack the Soviet Union, she risks everything to join the legendary Night Witches, an all-female night bomber regiment wreaking havoc on the invading Germans. When she is stranded behind enemy lines, Nina becomes the prey of a lethal Nazi murderess known as the Huntress, and only Nina’s bravery and cunning will keep her alive. Transformed by the horrors he witnessed from Omaha Beach to the Nuremberg Trials, British war correspondent Ian Graham has become a Nazi hunter. Yet one target eludes him: a vicious predator known as the Huntress. To find her, the fierce, disciplined investigator joins forces with the only witness to escape the Huntress alive: the brazen, cocksure Nina. But a shared secret could derail their mission unless Ian and Nina force themselves to confront it. Growing up in post-war Boston, seventeen-year-old Jordan McBride is determined to become a photographer. When her long-widowed father unexpectedly comes home with a new fiancée, Jordan is thrilled. But there is something disconcerting about the soft-spoken German widow. Certain that danger is lurking, Jordan begins to delve into her new stepmother’s past—only to discover that there are mysteries buried deep in her family . . . secrets that may threaten all Jordan holds dear.

My Thoughts: It’s been a hot minute since I’ve read a Kate Quinn book. I listened to The Alice Network and The Rose Code a couple summers ago and both of those books live absolutely rent free in my head to this day. She has a knack for writing captivating historical fiction novels and The Huntress was no exception. I want to start with how much research must’ve gone into the background story of each character - and even the book’s various settings - before she ever put words to a page. Between the nuances of how each country included in this narrative experienced WW2 and being able to name real landmarks within those regions, it was incredible. It breathed life into everything the characters went through during the war and gave clarity to their perspectives in the current day. True to her usual style, the format of the book bounces between different characters: a former British war correspondent, a former Russian woman pilot, and a young American woman living in Boston. The story also switches timelines between the present and various memories from time during the war and further back. I was equally invested in each character and it was impossible not to root for them all. Also, I thought the author did a PHENOMENAL job of humanizing the antagonist just enough to the point where I second guessed if she was still a horrible person or if she had truly reconciled for all the previous horrors she caused. The plot was just as addicting as the characters and I couldn’t wait to see where their individual paths would inevitably cross. I feel like I’m rambling, but needless to say, I’m adding another 5-star Kate Quinn book to my “read” shelf.

CARRY ON by Rainbow Rowell (SIMON SNOW #1)

Rating: 5/5 stars

Summary: Simon Snow is the worst Chosen One who's ever been chosen. That's what his roommate, Baz, says. And Baz might be evil and a vampire and a complete git, but he's probably right. Half the time, Simon can't even make his wand work, and the other half, he starts something on fire. His mentor's avoiding him, his girlfriend broke up with him, and there's a magic-eating monster running around, wearing Simon's face. Baz would be having a field day with all this, if he were here — it's their last year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Simon's infuriating nemesis didn't even bother to show up.

My Thoughts: Okay I randomly bought this book from a local bookstore last fall, and I can’t remember the exact reason I picked it up, but hot dang I’m glad I did. Although I have the physical copy, I opted for the audiobook and Y’ALL. This was one of the most entertaining fantasies I’ve ever read. The narrator does a phenomenal job of really capturing the sass belonging to each character while not overdoing it. I gotta start by saying this is one of the easiest magical structures to follow that I’ve ever come across. There’s only a few types of magical beings you have to be aware of and they’re all pretty mainstream. The spells these mages cast are sooooo silly. They’re mostly based on nursery rhymes or modern day lyrics, idioms, etc., which honestly added some comedic relief to almost all of the intense battle scenes. Plus, don’t get me started on the top notch BANTER these characters were serving up. I was OBSESSED with the back and forth between Simon and Baz, but Penelope had a few one-liners in there that had me cackling. Though the climax of the book wasn’t a huge shock, the plot had me hooked from the very beginning. I will say, Part 1 was a little slow because Baz’s character hadn’t been introduced yet. However, I can respect that you need to know the background on Simon Snow and Watford first before adding another dynamic character into the mix. Honestly, if you’re new to fantasy or are in a fantasy slump, I highly recommend giving this book a try. It was exactly what I needed when I needed it.

THE OTHER BLACK GIRL by Zakiya Dalila Harris

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Summary: Twenty-six-year-old editorial assistant Nella Rogers is tired of being the only Black employee at Wagner Books. Fed up with the isolation and microaggressions, she’s thrilled when Harlem-born and bred Hazel starts working in the cubicle beside hers. They’ve only just started comparing natural hair care regimens, though, when a string of uncomfortable events elevates Hazel to Office Darling, and Nella is left in the dust. Then the notes begin to appear on Nella’s desk: LEAVE WAGNER. NOW. It’s hard to believe Hazel is behind these hostile messages. But as Nella starts to spiral and obsess over the sinister forces at play, she soon realizes that there’s a lot more at stake than just her career.

My Thoughts: I remember this book being described as having a “Get Out meets Stepford Wives” vibe to it. So I was excited to see what it was all about since it also was recently adapted by Hulu. We experience most of this book through the main character, Nella, who is an editorial assistant at a publishing company called Wagner Books and happens to be the only person of color in the office as well. She’s tired of the way she’s treated and is very excited when she learns another Black woman, Hazel, was just hired and will be sitting in the cubicle next to her. Although their rapport starts off well enough, some very uncomfy things start happening that pushes Hazel into the spotlight and leaves Nella second guessing everything going on around her. This book has some very WTF IS HAPPENING moments in it that even left me feeling a little gaslit. So, naturally, Nella becomes pretty paranoid and I started wondering if she was always an unreliable narrator or if her paranoia is just making it seem that way. I will say, this book felt a little longer than it needed to be and the big reveal at the end felt kind of abrupt, but I definitely did not see it coming. I haven’t watched the Hulu adaptation yet, but I’ll be interested to see how closely they followed the book. If you haven’t read this one and are looking for a non-gruesome psychological thriller, I recommend giving this one a try!

FORGET ME NOT by Julie Soto

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Summary: Ama Torres loves being a wedding planner. But with a mother who has been married more times than you can count on your fingers, Ama has decided that marriage is not the route for her. But weddings? Weddings are amazing. As a small business owner, she knows how to match her clients with the perfect vendor to give them the wedding of their dreams. Well, almost perfect… Elliot hates being a florist, most of the time. When his father left him the flower shop, he considered it a burden, but he’s stuck with it. Just like how he’s stuck with the way he proposed to Ama, his main collaborator and girlfriend (or was she?) two years ago. But flowers have grown on him, just like Ama did. And flowers can’t run off and never speak to him again, like Ama did. When Ama is hired to plan a celebrity wedding that will bring her business national exposure, there's a catch: Elliot is already contracted to design the flowers. Things are not helped by the two brides, who see the obvious chemistry between Ama and Elliot and are determined to set them up, not knowing their complicated history. Add in a meddling ex-boss, and a reality TV film crew documenting every step of the wedding prep, and Ama and Elliot's hearts are not only in jeopardy again, but this time, their livelihoods are too.

My Thoughts: Although this book took me almost two weeks to get through, I totally understand the hype behind it! Ama is a wedding planner and has zero interest in having a wedding of her own. Elliot is a florist who wasn’t necessarily intending to become a florist, but after his father passed away, he took over the family’s flower shop. It’s clear Ama and Elliot have a history, but what happened two years ago between them is a mystery. I loved that the book flipped between the present in Ama’s POV and the past in Elliot’s POV. It gave me a chance to not only understand Ama better, but also Elliot’s character and how their previous connection affected him. The plotline of this book was really solid and kept me invested in addition to the second-chance romance brewing between Ama and Elliot. Not to mention, Elliot’s tattoos??? Ooooweee don’t get me started on how attractive they were. If you’re looking for a romance that’s pretty on theme with wedding szn right around the corner, I definitely recommend giving this one a try!

ONLY AND FOREVER by Chloe Liese (BERGMAN BROTHERS #7)

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Summary: Viggo Bergman, hopeless romantic, is thoroughly weary of waiting for his happily ever after. But between opening a romance bookstore, running a romance book club, coaching kids' soccer, and adopting a household of pets—just maybe, he’s overcommitted himself?—Viggo’s chaotic life has made finding his forever love seem downright improbable. Enter Tallulah Clarke, chilly cynic with a massive case of writer’s block. Tallulah needs help with her thriller’s romantic subplot. Viggo needs another pair of hands to keep his store afloat. So they agree to swap skills and cohabitate for convenience—his romance expertise to revive her book, her organizational prowess to salvage his store. They hardly get along, and they couldn’t be more different, but who says roommate-coworkers need to be friends? As they share a home and life, Tallulah and Viggo discover a connection that challenges everything they believe about love, and reveals the plot twist they never saw happily ever after is here already, right under their roof.

My Thoughts: Ugh. Okay. So let me start by saying, I have absolutely ADORED the Bergman Brothers series ever since reading the first book (Only When It’s Us) back in 2021. The Bergman family has seven kids, hence a seven-book series to follow. Thus far, we know Viggo as the brother who is obsessed with romance novels and has convinced characters in the other books to utilize the fail-proof romance book tactic of a grand gesture to express their feelings in an impactful way. SO OBVIOUSLY, I’ve been THOROUGHLY looking forward to his book for the last six installments. Especially since he’s the last sibling in the series. Although I did enjoy this book, it sadly did not blow me away as I was anticipating. I mean like, true to Chloe Liese’s MO with this series, I obviously had some big feels during the heartwarming scenes and LOVED that these two characters supported one another in such a unique way. The banter was pretty decent as well, which you know I take seriously. The pace of their connection-building felt organic enough, but there were a couple of things that came up where I was like “really tho?” For example, Viggo has yet to deal his V-card. Which is TOTALLY FINE, but didn’t feel like it fit the narrative here or the character we’ve gotten to know over the series?? I don’t know. Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It just wasn’t the series ender that I hoped for. If you’ve read the Bergman Brothers series then I obviously recommend reading this one. Just keep your expectations lower than I set mine going into it.

WAYWARD SON by Rainbow Rowell (SIMON SNOW #2)

Rating: 5/5 stars

Summary: The story is supposed to be over. Simon Snow did everything he was supposed to do. He beat the villain. He won the war. He even fell in love. Now comes the good part, right? Now comes the happily ever after… So why can’t Simon Snow get off the couch? What he needs, according to his best friend, is a change of scenery. He just needs to see himself in a new light… That’s how Simon and Penny and Baz end up in a vintage convertible, tearing across the American West. They find trouble, of course. (Dragons, vampires, skunk-headed things with shotguns.) And they get lost. They get so lost, they start to wonder whether they ever knew where they were headed in the first place…

My Thoughts: Okay so I thought the last book was entertaining, but I wasn’t ready for the number of times this second installment had me LAFFIN. Simon, Baz, and Penny are up to some shenanigans yet again, but this time their adventure takes them to the United States. Their friend Agatha moved to California after graduating from their magic school back in England and they’re here to visit. When they realize she might be in a bit of trouble, a cross-country road trip from Chicago to California commences. Cue a number of hilarious obstacles they run into trying to reach their friend who has been kidnapped by a weird vampire science cult. I loved that the magical rules and politics were different from state to state, and that they had to modify their usual spells to reflect American pop culture. I will say, Simon is a bit of a broody boi throughout this book and there was a bit of self sabotaging going on that I didn’t love. However, I can see that his character arc is going to change once again in the third book, so I’m excited to see where that goes. If you haven’t dabbled in the Simon Snow series yet, I can’t recommend it enough!

DAISY DARKER by Alice Feeney

Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary: After years of avoiding each other, Daisy Darker’s entire family is assembling for Nana’s 80th birthday party in Nana’s crumbling gothic house on a tiny tidal island. Finally back together one last time, when the tide comes in, they will be cut off from the rest of the world for eight hours. The family arrives, each of them harboring secrets. Then at the stroke of midnight, as a storm rages, Nana is found dead. And an hour later, the next family member follows… Trapped on an island where someone is killing them one by one, the Darkers must reckon with their present mystery as well as their past secrets, before the tide comes in and all is revealed.

My Thoughts: I got this book through Book of the Month back in 2022 and it had soooo much hype around it right after it was published. I honestly had no idea what it was about going into it, and I ended up opting for the audiobook because it happened to be available through Libby. As soon as I started reading it, I recognized that the author was giving a huge nod to “And Then There Were None” as a poem about how the Darker family dies shows up in chalk on the wall at Seaglass, their nana’s house. We experience this gruesome Halloween night through the eyes of the youngest Darker sister, Daisy. In attendance are her parents, her two older sisters, her nana, niece, and a neighbor they grew up with. Since the house is in the middle of the sea on a hill, the family can’t leave until the tide goes back out in the morning. One by one, each member of the family is mysteriously killed in a way that is similar to their death in the poem on the wall, and no one knows who is doing it. For most of the book, I was trying to guess whodunnit. I assumed it was someone in the house if this plot was following the “And Then There Were None” blueprint, but I was NOT READY for the plot twist at the end. It made sense once it was revealed, but it was still so unexpected. The writing was great, the characters were all dislikeable lol, and my conclusion is that this book deserved the hype it got back in 2022.

SHARK HEART by Emily Habeck

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Summary: For Lewis and Wren, their first year of marriage is also their last. A few weeks after their wedding, Lewis receives a rare diagnosis. He will retain most of his consciousness, memories, and intellect, but his physical body will gradually turn into a great white shark. As Lewis develops the features and impulses of one of the most predatory creatures in the ocean, his complicated artist’s heart struggles to make peace with his unfulfilled dreams. At first, Wren internally resists her husband’s fate. Is there a way for them to be together after Lewis changes? Then, a glimpse of Lewis’s developing carnivorous nature activates long-repressed memories for Wren, whose story vacillates between her childhood living on a houseboat in Oklahoma, her time with a college ex-girlfriend, and her unusual friendship with a woman pregnant with twin birds. Woven throughout this bold novel is the story of Wren’s mother, Angela, who becomes pregnant with Wren at fifteen in an abusive relationship amidst her parents’ crumbling marriage. In the present, all of Wren’s grief eventually collides, and she is forced to make an impossible choice.

My Thoughts: I know what you’re thinking because I was thinking the same thing going into this book: how could a story about a guy being diagnosed with a mutation that he will turn into a shark turn out to be so beautiful? Let me tell you. This writing was stunning. I don’t know how the author did it, but she captures you and doesn’t let you go. The format was refreshing because it flips between normal dialogues and storytelling, screenplays, and more, as well as switching between a few character POVs. I loved that although the first half of the book focuses on Lewis and Ren’s relationship and their coping as Lewis slowly transformed into a great white shark, the second half pivots to Wren’s childhood and the relationship with her mother (who was also diagnosed with a type of mutation). Although romance is a theme in this book, it’s not the primary one. There is a lot of messaging in this story related to grieving people who have changed, learning how to become a caretaker for someone, the relationships between parents and children, and more. If you haven’t read this book yet, put it on your TBR list for this year ASAP. It’s a book I will think about often and will definitely be recommending to people for the foreseeable future.

Okie doke! That’s it for April.

Cheers to a lovely spring and let the countdown to summer begin! 🙂

2024 Book Count: 43

Add me on Goodreads if you haven’t already.

YOUR TURN! What’s on your radar for summer reads?