I hauled quite a few books in April, which is great, but at the same time, I’m in this stupid reading slump, so nothing is getting read.
I want to read everything…so of course nothing is getting read. It’s annoying and frustrating. I also blame Farscape for my lack of reading. Honestly, it took over my life and I got sucked in – it’s like my all-time favorite show and I binged the crap out of it. But now that I’ve finished it – sad face – I need to get back to the books. One good thing is that I’m writing again, so it’s not a total loss, but I really need to get back into reading.
I managed to get 9 books in April – more than I anticipated – but I’m excited to have them all and can’t wait to read them.
Wicked Saints – Emily A. Duncan
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself.
A prince in danger must decide who to trust.
A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings.
Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war.
In a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints, where a forbidden romance threatens to tip the scales between dark and light. Wicked Saints is the thrilling start to Emily A. Duncan’s devastatingly Gothic Something Dark and Holy trilogy.
I actually hauled 2 copies of this book – the original hardcover (bought on release day) and the OwlCrate Exclusive Cover. I was lucky enough to read an early copy of this last summer, and absolutely loved it, and I can’t wait to reread the finished version of the book. You can check out my review here if you’re interested! I have another copy of this book coming – it was supposed to be here in April, but there was a delay, bringing my total up to 4 copies.
*I’ve shared the OwlCrate cover of this book, but you can check out the original cover on Goodreads, linked above!
The Devouring Gray – Christine Lynn Herman
On the edge of town a beast haunts the woods, trapped in the Gray, its bonds loosening…
Uprooted from the city, Violet Saunders doesn’t have much hope of fitting in at her new school in Four Paths, a town almost buried in the woodlands of rural New York. The fact that she’s descended from one of the town’s founders doesn’t help much, either—her new neighbours treat her with distant respect, and something very like fear. When she meets Justin, May, Isaac, and Harper, all children of founder families, and sees the otherworldly destruction they can wreak, she starts to wonder if the townsfolk are right to be afraid.
When bodies start to appear in the woods, the locals become downright hostile. Can the teenagers solve the mystery of Four Paths, and their own part in it, before another calamity strikes?
I’m super excited to read this! I’ve heard nothing but great things and hopefully soon I can dive in and – fingers crossed – fall in love with this story!
Defy Me – Tahereh Mafi
The gripping fifth installment in the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestselling Shatter Me series. Will Juliette’s broken heart make her vulnerable to the strengthening darkness within her?
Juliette’s short tenure as the supreme commander of North America has been an utter disaster. When the children of the other world leaders show up on her doorstep, she wants nothing more than to turn to Warner for support and guidance. But he shatters her heart when he reveals that he’s been keeping secrets about her family and her identity from her—secrets that change everything.
Juliette is devastated, and the darkness that’s always dwelled within her threatens to consume her. An explosive encounter with unexpected visitors might be enough to push her over the edge.
Okay, so this was an impulse buy more than anything. I read the original trilogy way back when and feel like I need to reread it before I start this continuation trilogy. So really, I bought this with the anticipation of reading it eventually and to honor my love for the original trilogy.
You’d Be Mine – Erin Hahn
Annie Mathers is America’s sweetheart and heir to a country music legacy full of all the things her Gran warned her about. Superstar Clay Coolidge is most definitely going to end up one of those things.
But unfortunately for Clay, if he can’t convince Annie to join his summer tour, his music label is going to drop him. That’s what happens when your bad boy image turns into bad boy reality. Annie has been avoiding the spotlight after her parents’ tragic death, except on her skyrocketing YouTube channel. Clay’s label wants to land Annie, and Clay has to make it happen.
Swayed by Clay’s undeniable charm and good looks, Annie and her band agree to join the tour. From the start fans want them to be more than just tour mates, and Annie and Clay can’t help but wonder if the fans are right. But if there’s one part of fame Annie wants nothing to do with, it’s a high-profile relationship. She had a front row seat to her parents’ volatile marriage and isn’t interested in repeating history. If only she could convince her heart that Clay, with his painful past and head over heels inducing tenor, isn’t worth the risk.
Twitter made me buy this. No, seriously. It wasn’t really on my radar, and then suddenly my feed was full of this book, and as someone who isn’t a huge contemporary reader, y’all better not let me down with this book. I rarely buy contemporaries by authors I’m not familiar with, but so far in 2019, I’ve read two amazing ones and I’m hoping this doesn’t disappoint.
Light Years – Kass Morgan
Reeling from the latest attack by a mysterious enemy, the Quatra Fleet Academy is finally admitting students from every planet in the solar system after centuries of exclusivity.
Hotshot pilot Vesper, an ambitious Tridian citizen, dreams of becoming a captain – but when she loses her spot to a brilliant, wisecracking boy from the wrong side of the asteroid belt, it makes her question everything she thought she knew. Growing up on the toxic planet Deva, Cormak will take any chance he can get to escape his dead-end life and join the Academy – even if he has to steal someone’s identity to do it. Arran was always considered an outsider on icy Chetire, always dreaming of something more than a life working in the mines. Now an incoming cadet, Arran is looking for a place to belong – he just never thought that place would be in the arms of a Tridian boy. And Orelia is hiding a dark secret – she’s infiltrated the Academy to complete a mission, one that threatens the security of everyone there. But if anyone finds out who she really is, it’ll be her life on the line.
These cadets will have to put their differences aside and become a team to defend their world from a cunning enemy – but the danger might be lurking closer to home than they think…
I managed to get this from a trade on Twitter. I read The 100 years ago and enjoyed it, but having watched the show first, the book fell kind of flat, so I was a little hesitant to get this book, despite the fact it sounded amazing. So, when I was able to get an ARC for the cost of shipping, I jumped on it. Ultimately if I like it, I’ll be buying a finished copy. I’m a sucker for sci-fi and this sounds like something I’ll really like.
Lovestruck – Kate Watson
Sixteen-year-old cupid-in-training Kali is in an Olympus-sized mountain of trouble. Rule number one in arrow-toting matchmaking: don’t stick yourself. But accidents happen, and Kali instantly falls hard for her indie rock, bass-playing target, Benicio.
The God of Love is going to kill her. Even if he is her dad.
Being the daughter of Eros isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. For one thing, a girl can get jaded when her parents have the most beautiful and fatalistic love story in history. For another, immortality royally sucks when the Oracle condemns you to eternity in the wrong profession. Do the Gods care that Kali wants to ditch the love stuff and be a muse?
Nope.
To reclaim her heart and her destiny, Kali is left with no choice but to defy the Gods, tempt the Fates, date the mortal love-of-her-life, and hope she doesn’t lose her best friend, Hector, in the process.
I’m also a sucker for anything Greek Mythology so, I’m excited to read this. I haven’t seen much about it, but from the minute it hit my radar, I knew I was going to have to buy it. Though, I wasn’t planning on buying it in April, but I had ordered another book off Amazon, and my fingers kind of just slipped and both books arrived in my mailbox a few days later. I’ll probably save this to read on my beach trip this summer since it’s a paperback and it sounds like a romance!
More Than We Can Tell – Brigid Kemmerer
Rev Fletcher is battling the demons of his past. But with loving adoptive parents by his side, he’s managed to keep them at bay…until he gets a letter from his abusive father and the trauma of his childhood comes hurtling back.
Emma Blue spends her time perfecting the computer game she built from scratch, rather than facing her parents’ crumbling marriage. She can solve any problem with the right code, but when an online troll’s harassment escalates, she’s truly afraid.
When Rev and Emma meet, they both long to lift the burden of their secrets and bond instantly over their shared turmoil. But when their situations turn dangerous, their trust in each other will be tested in ways they never expected. This must-read story will once again have readers falling for Brigid Kemmerer’s emotional storytelling.
I’m constantly hauling Brigid’s books, I know. It’s most definitely not a problem…though I am running out of shelf space for her books. It’s fine. But I honestly can’t believe I was able to trade for a UK ARC of this book. I had kind of resigned myself to the fact that I wasn’t going to have a full set for LTTL + MTWCT (meaning US ARCs, UK ARCs, Finished Copies) but I do now and I’m so excited! One of these days, I’ll do a post showing off my Brigid Kemmerer Collection…I just need my cousin to send me my UK ARC of Letters back to me.
*I’ve posted the picture of the front of the UK ARC versus the UK paperback cover or the US hardcover.
Storm and Fury – Jennifer L. Armentrout
Eighteen-year-old Trinity Marrow may be going blind, but she can see and communicate with ghosts and spirits. Her unique gift is part of a secret so dangerous that she’s been in hiding for years in an isolated compound fiercely guarded by Wardens—gargoyle shape-shifters who protect humankind from demons. If the demons discover the truth about Trinity, they’ll devour her, flesh and bone, to enhance their own powers.
When Wardens from another clan arrive with disturbing reports that something out there is killing both demons and Wardens, Trinity’s safe world implodes. Not the least because one of the outsiders is the most annoying and fascinating person she’s ever met. Zayne has secrets of his own that will upend her world yet again—but working together becomes imperative once demons breach the compound and Trinity’s secret comes to light. To save her family and maybe the world, she’ll have to put her trust in Zayne. But all bets are off as a supernatural war is unleashed…
Omfg. I actually can’t believe that I was able to get an ARC of this book. A lovely girl on Twitter was kind enough to trade for it, and I couldn’t be more excited! I had kind of resigned myself to having to wait until it’s release, which was fine, but I was able to trade a whole bunch of swag from past book boxes for it, and I’m glad those items found a new home! I cannot wait to read this book, and it just might be the thing to pull me out of this reading slump I’m in.
Well, that’s it for the April Book Haul! There are so many great books coming out this month, hopefully I have self-control and don’t break my bank LOL.
What is your favorite book you hauled and/or read in April?
Writing The Universe 