April Wrap Up

April is now over, and so it is time for another wrap up!  Last month was by definitely one of my best reading months of the year so far, as I managed to finally break out of the slump of March and read 5 books during it.  Although there were a few books that I wasn’t a huge fan of, they were definitely balanced out by some amazing reads that I can’t wait to talk about.

I also decided to do something a little different for my wrap up this month, as I was starting to feel myself falling into a creative rut by posting the same posts over and over again.  So instead of just discussing all of the books that I read this month, I am also going to briefly talk about the movies and TV shows I watched in April, something inspired by posts and videos such as Stories I Ate This Month and many other bloggers who I have seen doing a similar idea.

So I hope you enjoy and here are all the books I read, and the movies and TV shows I watched in April!

This was actually a book that I started back at the very end of March, but because of how late in the month I started it, I did read almost the entirety of this in April.  Unfortunately this book did not meet my expectations at all, as this was a book I was so looking forward to reading after loving the idea of this magical, dark and twisted game of Caraval.  However, I found that I just couldn’t get along with or grow to like the characters, particularly Scarlett, and the writing style wasn’t something I was a fan of either.  I also had a problem with the continuous plot twists that were constantly revoked and went back on, and so unfortunately I didn’t end up enjoying this book as much as I would have liked.

Rating:

2.5/5

After finishing Caraval, I knew that I just needed to pick up a book I knew I would enjoy to stop myself from falling into a reading slump, and so of course this one was the perfect choice.  Somehow I ended up enjoying this one even more than Six of Crows (who even knew that was possible?!), with the characters even more witty and spectacular than I remembered them to be.  I adored exploring the Grisha world even further in this book, with Leigh Bardugo’s beautiful writing style immediately transporting me back to Ketterdam as soon as the first sentence.  I am both so happy that I have read this book and sad that I have no finished this duology, and so I am currently comforting myself by diving back into the Grisha trilogy!

Rating:

5/5

Next up I read my first classic of year, something that it was definitely about time to do as I desperately wanted to continue on reading and exploring more classics as I had in 2017.  I am also currently studying Gothic literature, and so this one seemed like the perfect book to pick up.  I ended up flying through this one in only three days, something I was definitely not expecting as classics usually take me at least a week or two to get through.  As you can probably tell then, I really enjoyed this book, with its unique format and story that I just could not stop reading.

Rating:

4.5/5

After finishing Frankenstein, I was craving a similar dark, suspenseful novel that I could really get my teeth into, which thankfully meant that I finally picked up this book that has been on my TBR for ever.  However, unfortunately I did not enjoy this one anywhere near as much as Frankenstein.  I did really enjoy the unique format, and mystery behind Carly and Kaitlyn, this something I very much enjoyed exploring, especially as I found the character of Kaitlyn to be really complex and intriguing.  That said, the plot of this one was just too all over the place and confusing for me to those aspects to save this book, as there just seemed to so many things going on that I could keep track of them all, and so this book unfortunately did not meet my expectations for it.

Rating:

3/5

Finally, I ended the month with a book I have been so excited to read ever since it came in the November Fairyloot box.  Seeing as it comes out at the end of May, it seemed like the perfect time to give this one a read, even if I was still a little intimidated at the size of it!  I have to say, I think that the hype surrounding this book is justly deserved.  This book manages to balance two dual POV’s and time periods so well, with both storylines equally as compelling and addictive as each other.  The characters and world-building was superb, and I can’t wait for this book to be released so that everyone else can enjoy this fantastic new fantasy.

Rating:

4.75/5

Not only was April a great month for books, but it was also an amazing one for movies, as I got to see four movies during it!  I am definitely not a huge movie watcher, as I personally prefer a good TV series over a single 2 hour movie, but April was filled with too amazing movies for me to not go and see them.

April was definitely a great month for book-to-movie adaptations, as two of my anticipated of the year were released during it.  First up I went to see Ready Player One, based on the novel by Ernest Cline, and whilst I did enjoy this film, I certainly have to say that I was still much more of a fan of the book (I also did a Movie V Book Review if you fancy seeing more of my thoughts!).  I also got to go see Love, Simon, based on Simon Vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli, and honestly I can not tell you how good this movie was!  I adored everything about this adaptation and how they converted this amazing book to the big screen, and overall it just made me even more desperate to pick up more of Becky Albertalli’s books really soon!

A Quiet Place was the next film I saw in April, but unfortunately this one really just wasn’t my cup of tea at all.  I didn’t feel like we got to know the world or the story well enough, and honestly it wasn’t the sort of horror I am a fan of.  And finally, I of course had to go and see the film that everyone is talking about at the minute – Avengers: Infinity War.  I am a huge marvel fan, and so have been anticipating the release of this film for what feels like forever; and I can happily say that it did not disappoint!  This film was everything I expected and wanted it to be and more that I am now left so devastated and with so many questions that Part 2 needs to get here right now!

Over the last few months, for whatever reasons I’ve really got out of the habit of watching TV Shows on Netflix and such, and so April unfortunately fell into much of the same pattern.  Lost In Space was released on Netflix this month, so I have started that, although unfortunately I have yet to really get into it, as I am currently only on episode two.  I have, however, been doing better with both The Good Place and Queer Eye, both of which I also started last month.  I am a huge fan of both of them, and am currently really enjoying watching them, even if I am currently slowing myself down a bit as I am beginning to reach the end of both of them!

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What books did you read this month?  Which was your favourite?  What movies and TV shows did you watch?  Have you read or watched any of these – what did you think?