April Reading Roundup
I read 5 books in April of 2025. A lighter load than usual, but I was struggling to choose which book to read and was constantly flipping back and forth between 7 or 8 different novels. This time of year, as spring is finally beginning to set in, I find I do not have the stomach for the more gruesome and depressing novels I am drawn to in the winter months. So I am beginning my yearly transition to the lighter side of my TBR, which you will start to see reflected in my May roundup I’m sure. But for now, read on to see my reads and reviews from April.
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
I feel like it is safe to say most people, including me, have preconceived ideas of what Classics will be. how the characters will act and what the writing will feel like. That a story can only be one thing. Du Maurier lulls us into a false sense of security, playing into these classics stereotypes, letting us believe this is just a story of a dead wife and a husband who will never recover from the loss of his love told by the unnamed unloved young drip of a second wife.
Then she pulls the rug from under us so swiftly we have no hope of guessing the turn. This is a reminder that we never truly know what’s going on behind the curtain.
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch * april book club
This book did not wow me, but I rated it 4/5 stars right after finishing, on a high from the whirlwind of a story I had just read. However, after a few days I started to really think about the plot holes or easy-way-outs the author had written and it dawned on me that maybe it was not as impressive as I first thought. While the concept was startlingly unique and interesting, it went by far too quickly; breezing past the scientific details and plot twists that would have made the book all that much more gripping.
When discussing this with my book club, we debated the, at times, juvenile writing and lack of scientific detail. Some thought it was a good choice as it made it more approachable for the non-science fiction reader, while others, like myself, thought it could have been about 200 pages longer with even higher stakes. We also considered the author’s use of perspective which played a big role in this story, did we think the main character was more deserving than others because he actually was. Or did we feel that way because his is the lens form which we perceive the whole story. All in all a thought provoking read.
Funny Story by Emily Henry *reread
Every review I write of an Emily Henry novel is generally the same. And that is because after reading each of her books I feel I have to once again shout from the rooftops that she is the best writer of romantic fiction of our generation. Her characters are real people, or at least they are to the reader, and they have full and complete lives beyond the relationships that come about in her stories. Her characters have family drama, work through friendship troubles, make difficult career decisions, pursue passion projects, harbor secrets and on and on which is why we believe the romance that then blooms between them. Because we get to know these people fully, down to their inner life, we root for and truly understand when the characters fall for one another. Henry writes in romantic clichés with the understanding that all romance is a cliché. I should know, as I’m currently reaping the benefits of a friends to lovers cliché myself!
The Perfect Couple by Elin Hilderbrand
A book with so many layers secrets and scandals you can’t even be sure all of them were addressed by the end of the book.
A perfect beautiful expensive wedding on the perfect beautiful expensive island of Nantucket goes terribly wrong when an unexpected death throws a wrench in the celebrations. Everyone has their secrets and everyone has their own agenda. Will we find out whodunnit per say? did someone dunnit??
I enjoyed this as much as I have enjoyed any of Elin’s books. She writes her characters so realistically that you can’t decide if you love them or hate them.
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Let it be known that I do not enjoy books in which the main through line is the sufferings and trials and tribulations of women. I prefer to read about women thriving, being successful in their endeavors, and being generally happy. So the fact that the first half of this book had the energy of “We should write a book about how wronged women were/are, and isn’t this terrible! Look, everyone is mean to her because she’s a woman!” was not a great start for me. And ok, while yes this is an important discussion to be had, I, as a woman, am not super interested in reading books like this. I know we have been taken advantage of and undermined and underestimated, we still are! I am not the one who needs to hear about it! This is not helped by the fact that the majority of the other women in the book also are terrible to the main character and further the societal gender norms and in turn making it seem like she is the only woman thinking this way. Which of course is not the case. All that being said, once we really got into the thick of it, I found myself enjoying it more.
The relationships and friendships between the characters were nice and written well and who doesn’t love a book with a dog’s POV? I particularly enjoyed the Supper at Six chapters and the chemistry (scientific, not romantic) throughout. Not the best book I’ve ever read, but I enjoyed the second half.
A solid mix of genres with a classic, a thriller, a romance, a murder mystery, and what I would call a fiction novel. Excited to see what May brings.
Feel free to discuss your April reads in the comments, I’d love to hear what people are reading.
