April Reads

Let's start right off by addressing my favorite reads of the month. After Don't Kiss the Bride which was so good it got it's own separate review (click here to read it), I thought April was going to be full of mediocre 3-star reads. Then came Aly Martinez's From the Embers.

I'm putting it right out there - this book is joining Before Us and Lessons in Chemistry as contenders for top book of the year. Not only is it beautifully written, it's also emotional and heartwarming. Any book that elicits both *gasps* and *tears* from me is *Chef's Kiss* (disclaimer, I hate that term, but everyone is using it so I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon. This will probably be the first and last time I use it).

I gave Embers 4.75 stars. The only thing keeping it from a full 5-star rating is I think there's such a thing as too many plot twists. My 1:00am tests to my Book BFF as I raced to finish the book read as follows :

Okay, enough gushing about my favorites, let's see what else I read this month . . .

I 'accidentally' read Melanie Harlow's Ignite. I say 'accidentally' because I hadn't realized it was book one in a second-generation series. Of course, being the completist that I am, I immediately had to go back and read Irresistible. While both stories mirrored one another, I'll say I enjoyed Irresistible a little more. It was fun seeing Winnie, the MFC in Ignite, as a precocious four-year-old. Harlow does a good age-gap romance which I'm a sucker for. Expect more reviews of her work in the coming months.

Another author that I've been blitzing and have at least two more novels waiting on my Kindle to read is Elizabeth O'Roark. The Devil Gets His Due winds up the Grumpy Devil series and, while it was good, it was also probably my least favorite. I was almost going to say I don't care much for the hidden/unexpected pregnancy trope. However, given my own Second Chances deals with that theme, it would be kind of hypocritical of me. Let's just say that The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea was my favorite in that series. I'm hearing really good things about The Summer We Fell. I have it and Waking Olivia on my TBR.

I rounded out the month with another favorite author - Elsie Silver. I've been taking my time spacing out her reads because I dread the thought of not having something of hers to pick up. She's the perfect palate cleanser after a particularly rough read. She manages to perfectly blend both sweet and spicy. The Front Runner lived up to my expectations. With one more book in the series left, I can say it will be hard to top this one as my favorite.

Both Iced Out and Always Mine took what felt like an interminably long time for me to read. Always Mine had the same problem that kept me from giving Don't Kiss the Bride five stars - a hero that doesn't think he's worthy. I'm putting that up there with refusal to communicate as my current top pet peeves. As for Iced Out, the sex scenes were hot, hot, hot . . . and while I don't want to be the person who complains that there were too many . . . I guess in the juxtaposition of the story as a whole, they got to be a little distracting.

Overall ratings for the books read this month:

From the Embers 4.75

Don't Kiss the Bride 4.00

Irresistible 4.00

Ignite 3.75

The Devil Gets his Due 3.5

Iced Out 3.25

Always Mine 3.00

The Front Runner 4.00

The last day of the month I started the much coveted, new Emily Henry - Happy Place. I will end with this spoiler - +30% into the book and I'm already enjoying it far more than I did Book Lovers. Expect more praise with the May Reading Blog.

Cheers,

C.J.