I have to admit, April sort of got away from me. In many ways, it was a very rough month. Little family things and work being very demanding on my time and energies. Despite all of this, I did manage to get some books read. I also managed to participate in the Lol-a-thon reading challenge. Though I did not manage to post much about it. And I think I was the only one who participated (I'm not sure even the creator participated, to be honest). But that's ok. It was still fun and a way to get me to read things that I might not read normally.
Author: Emma Mills
Thoughts: This is a contemporary young adult book about a girl named Claudia whose life is going through some pretty big changes (as in many YA contemporary books). But she finds that, in the end, maybe some of those changes are good. She meets new people, makes new friends, and experiences new things by being forced to participate in the school's rendition of A Midsummer Night's Dream. And while her relationships with some of her family and friends also change, that doesn't mean she loses them.
This was a book I received in an Owlcrate box ages ago (it seems). I'm not sure why I waited so long to read it. I found it very charming and enjoyed it.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Author: Carlos Hernandez
Narrator: Anthony Rey Perez
Thoughts: A fun little story from Rick Riordan Presents (which all go on my must read, obviously). Admittedly, this one wasn't my favorite of the Rick Riordan Presents books, but I did like the Cuban spin and the magical aspects. Sal has a bad habit of breaking the universe (namely by bringing his dead mother back from alternate universes). He meets Gabi and together they find the ways that this power is bad and the ways it is good. Read to complete a Lol-a-thon challenge: Read a book with a fun cover.
Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Author: Marie Phillips
Narrator: Rosalyn Landor
Thoughts: There were parts of this book that I really enjoyed and thought were funny, but there were portions that I distinctly disliked. The premise is that the Greek gods are still around, but exist in a weakened state and live in a horrible house in London. They find that they need the help of a couple of mortals to restore their powers. I enjoyed the different gods and their modern "jobs." I distinctly did not care for the unsavory sex scenes and discussions. And there was a funny part about how you have to learn to feel guilty in order to be a Christian (Eros becomes a devout Christian and lectures Apollo on how guilt feels). Overall fairly funny and silly. Read for the Lol-a-thon challenge: Read a book with a non-human main character (if gods count).
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
Author: Cressida Cowell
Narrator: David Tennant
Thoughts: A re-read for me, but I do enjoy this book. It's almost nothing like the movie (which I love), but I like the things that are different. Hiccup is supposed to be the next leader of the Hairy Hooligans, after his father, but he can't train his tiny dragon as well as the other boys can. But he has the secret knowledge of the dragon language and finds a way to be a different kind of hero to his tribe. Also read for the Lol-a-thon challenge: Read a book with a non-human main character (in this case, Toothless who is a dragon).
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Author: Ashley Poston
Narrators: Eileen Stevens, Emily Lawrence, and Caitlin Davies
Thoughts: A re-telling of the Prince and the Pauper tale that takes place in the Geekarella universe. Actress Jess Stone rises to fame in a film re-enactment of a series (Starfield) with a huge nerd fan-base (think Star Trek and the new movie re-creations level). She is both loved and hated by a fandom that she doesn't understand nor care for. She runs into her doppelganger, Imogen, at a Starfield convention and they switch places so that Jess can try to save her career and Imogen can try to save Jess's character, Princess Amara (who Jess does not want saved). They find out how things are on the other side. I rather liked this story, it was sweet and redeeming. I will read any other Geekarella books that Ashley Poston writes! Read for the Lol-a-thon challenge: Read a re-telling.
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Author: Hideaki Sorachi
Thoughts: I needed a comic book or manga for the reading challenge. I was searching for one that was supposed to be funny that I hadn't read before and this series came across my radar. It takes place in a distant future where the samurais have been pushed aside by civilizations from other planets. However, a few samurais remain, trying to scrape a living and change the world in their own small ways. It was generally a pretty silly manga. I enjoyed it alright, but don't plan to read more of the series. Read for the Lol-a-thon challenge: Read a graphic novel/manga.
Rating: 2.5-3 stars out of 5
Authors: Seth Kubersky and Bob Schlinger
Title: A Question of HolmesAuthor: Brittany Cavallaro
Narrators: Julia Whelan and Graham Halstead
Thoughts: In the latest (and last?) installment of the Charlotte Holmes series, she and Jamie take on a case from the Oxford summer theater program. In the end, their story has its own wrap up. As far as the cases in this series went, the case itself was fairly tame in comparison to the other books, but it felt fitting to the end of Charlotte and Jamie's story. I enjoyed these books as fun, modern Sherlock Holmes re-tellings.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Author: Unknown
Thoughts: So I found a strange post about this poem from the booklr community on Tumblr and it sounded really funny. The post aptly called it "Wife or Knife" as it is an old poem about a wealthy woman who falls in love with a poor lawyer and puts on a mask to challenge him to a dual if he will not marry her. He agrees to the marriage at his friend's prodding, but she will not remove her mask and continues to mess with him for a bit before giving in a revealing herself and her story. It was very entertaining and a very quick read. I highly recommend it! Read for the Lol-a-thon challenge: Read a book written in an atypical format (sort of a short epic poem, which I almost never read).
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Unfortunately, I did not manage to finish an MCAT review book this month either. I focused too much energy on the reading challenge and work, but I am almost finished with the Biology review.
Fortunately, I am spending the last few days of this month (and the beginning of May) in Disneyland with my boyfriend! I have been in desperate need of a vacation and this one has been amazing so far!
Thanks for bearing with me. Anyone else read anything fun in April?
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