Melting Pages
Book Reviews and Recommendations
April Wrap Up
Hi everyone! April was a strange month. It was my first full month working from home which was strange enough, but I also struggled with my reading a bit for the first part of the month because I just couldn’t concentrate on anything! I also read fewer fantasy books than I usually do because I like fantasy that you need to really focus on, and obviously I was struggling to do that.
In the month of April I read 7 books for a total of 2,425 pages, which is pretty good! All 7 books were e-books and of those 7, three were romance, two were fantasy, one was a contemporary and one was a mystery. I was also pretty evenly split between 4 and 5 star reads this month, with four 5 stars and three 4 star reads!
The Mistake by Elle Kennedy – ★★★★★
After I loved The Deal I was so excited to continue on with this series because it’s surprised me with the topics it tackled in the first book, so I had high expectations for this one and I wasn’t disappointed! I loved following side characters from the first book and seeing not only this new relationship forming, but also the original relationship from an outside perspective!
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson – ★★★★☆
I picked this one up on a whim after seeing it on my kindle recommended section, and I’m so glad that I did! I have a full review for this book, but to sum it up I really liked the formatting of this book and how the clues were laid out for us along the way. I had a completely different ending in my head, so the ending was a lot of fun to read while I was going “oh. OHHHHHH, okay!” while reading because once the reveal started, I could immediately see all the clues leading to them!
Between the Sea and Stars by Chantal Gadoury – ★★★★☆
This is a retelling of The Little Mermaid that I decided to read because the author is from my area and I wanted to support her! I liked how this both stayed true to The Little Mermaid but also had it’s own twists to it, and was just a really sweet, quick read. The writing was really easy to get into as well which was a plus!
The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare – ★★★★★
I was in such a big romance mood that I decided to finally give Tessa Dare a shot after having her on my radar for a while, and I’m so happy that I did! I loved this couple and the marriage of convenience plotline, however I didn’t really like how often the guy would say anything along the lines of “I want to impregnante you” because that’s….not attractive to me at all. I do however really like how while this is a historical romance, it included more modern ideas like consent and how a relationship is about equality.
The Governess Game by Tessa Dare – ★★★★☆
After I loved The Duchess Deal, I immediately picked up The Governess Game. I fell in love with Alex and the two wards, but there was just something about the love interest Chase that rubbed me the wrong way. In a way, all romances are formulaic – girl meets boy, they fall in love but for one reason or another they feel like they don’t deserve it, then they finally give in, then something breaks them apart only to bring them back together in the end. I do wish that this had done something a little more unique, but it was still a fun light read in the end.
My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell – ★★★★★
I don’t even know what to say about this book, other than it was so heartbreaking and chilling at the same time. I fluctuated between not being able to put this book down to needing a breather. I’m amazed at how well the author was able to convey Vanessa’s mind and her thought process and how trauma really affects that, from refusing to accept that what happened was abuse to blaming the abuser and back again. This is the kind of book that will make you look back on past interactions and make you think twice about them.
The Wrongful Death by Kenneth B Andersen – ★★★★★
I read this for the Ultimate Blog Tour for TheWriteReads and I really enjoyed this! I have a full review available but it really only talks about my feelings since this is the third book in a series. I love the character development of the main character Phillip and how the author makes you feel like Hell is a real place that you actually wouldn’t mind visiting! This installment went places that I wasn’t expecting, and it was nice seeing more of this world and more characters!
Melting Pages 
Looks like you had a very good reading month! Inreally want to read A good girl’s guide to murder, that one sounds so good!
(www.evelynreads.com)
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I really want to continue with the next book but for some reason it isn’t available anywhere online even thought it released at the end of April! The only copies I can find are all upwards of $30 which is insane
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Ooh I didn’t know it was a series, I thought it was a standalone!
(just googled haha, weird that you can’t find it..)
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yeah I thought it was weird too! I’ve actually been struggling with finding copies of books whose authors are in the UK, but you would think I could at least find e-book versions but I can’t find them anywhere!
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