Show Us Your Books - What I Read in April

1. First order of business: a book themed Haikuesday ditty:

Don't fret, don't fear, for
it is Show Us Your Books Day!
Dance, booknerds, dance. Dance!

2. Second order of business: At the end of May an episode of The Armchair Librarians will air where we will discuss Side Effects May Vary and I'm sure we'll also touch on Dumplin' by Julie Murphy. We won't do spoilers, but if you'd like to read either of those before you listen to the podcast, now is the time. If you want to actually hear Jana and I talk about books, reading, and other things that may or may not be related out loud, you can catch us once a week on The Armchair Librarians. It's on iTunes and all episodes live here: http://thearmchairlibrarian.com/ .

Linkup Guidelines:

This link up happens the second Tuesday of every month.

The next one is Tuesday, June 14, 2016 (Flag Day!). 

1. Please visit and comment with both of your hosts, Jana & me
2. Please display the button (need it? let me know) or link back to us on your blog post
2. Please visit a few other blogs who've linked up and get some book talk going!

Here's what I read since the last linkup. As an example of how I don't really count books...when I sat down to write this post, I was sure that I had only read four books since the last linkup. 

Engrossing Reads

Please Don't Come Back from the Moon by Dean Bakopoulos - I adored the writing and really liked the story too. It's hard to be both gritty and mystical but this manages both well. Jana and I discussed on Episode 8 of The Armchair Librarians. (paperback, purchased from Amazon)

Circling the Sun by Paula McLain - I was a huge fan of The Paris Wife, and McLain did not disappoint in this similar undertaking. McLain takes actual history of actual people and crafts novels around them. This time her main character was Beryl Markham (who wrote West with the Night) and Denys Finch Hatton and Karen Blixen (Isak Dineson, writer of Out of Africa) filled it out. This was a beautiful and romantic novel tinged with loss, triumph, and hardship. I truly enjoyed it. (library hardback)

Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye - This is being touted as a Gothic re-telling of Jane Eyre, one of my all time favorites. I could see plenty of Jane/Jane paralells, but I really liked this story standing on its own. It was a little wild, a little improbable, a little out there, darkly funny, and pretty enjoyable. If you don't like books of Jane Eyre's wavelength (time period, manner of speech, etc.), this is not for you. This is also an example of why I say give threes a chance: I rated this book a three on goodreads and really enjoyed it. (library hardback)

Miller's Valley by Anna Quindlen - Quindlen's novels are usually solid reads for me, and this one was no different. I knew I would love it from the first three pages, and I did. It didn't blow me over or knock my socks off, it wasn't that kind of book. I saw it referred to as a quiet novel, and that's a great word for it. It held true to itself and pushed a lot of my great book buttons: beautiful writing, small town setting, working class/hardship. (library hardback)

Passed the Time Just Fine

Don't You Cry by Mary Kubica - This was hard for me to get into, but I needed to know where it was going so I kept with it. Once it did get going over halfway through, it was like a runaway train. I had to sit outside in my car just to finish it instead of driving home. Pretty far fetched to me. (Free from Netgalley)

My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix - I adored the 80s references and the kind of friends Abby and Gretchen were. The exorcism and demon stuff freaked me out, which was the point. Lots of insanity in this book, which made it a quick read for me, I finished it in a day. (Free from Netgalley)

Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys - A solid read with a like-able cast of quirky characters fitting of New Orleans. It left me wanting for something - a little more depth, a little more closure, I'm not sure. But something. (library hardback)

One Kick (Kick Lannigan #1) by Chelsea Cain - I tore through the Gretchen Lowell / Archie Sheridan novels by Cain, so I thought I'd try her new series. It didn't blow my hair back, but I'll definitely continue on. I want to see if it flows more when the set up of what will be a series character is all taken care of. (library hardback)

Hard No

The Girls by Emma Kline - This started out as a 4+ start book and ended just around a 2 star book. So much promise, lacking in delivery. I love me a good cult book...this wasn't one. I wouldn't waste the time. (Free from Netgalley)

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