Anticipated April Releases!

Hello, readers!

I have THIRTEEN books that I’m looking forward to in April, which is crazy.

Since we have a ton of books to get through, let’s get started!


1. Since We Last Spoke by Brenda Rufener

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Release Date: April 2, 2019

Summary: When Aggi Frank and Max Granger finally admitted their feelings for each other last December, it felt like love was beautiful and endless… until it wasn’t. A fatal car accident involving their older siblings throws their lives into sudden chaos. And with a restraining order now in place between the two bitter households, Aggi and Max’s love runs cold. Being together again seems like a distant fantasy, even though they share the same driveway. Still, Plum Lake is a small town, and staying apart can’t last forever. Aggi and Max eventually reunite at a lake-house party hosted by a mutual friend and break the ice after a year of silence. But just as they begin to rebuild their relationship, the unthinkable happens when Aggi’s little sister, Grace, flees from home after their father spirals into a fit of rage. With a support system of friends close by, Aggi and Max must confront each other and their families in the hopes of mending all the broken pieces.

2. You’d Be Mine by Erin Hahn

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Release Date: April 2, 2019

Summary: Annie Mathers is America’s sweetheart and heir to a country music legacy full of all the things her Gran warned her about. Superstar Clay Coolidge is most definitely going to end up one of those things. But unfortunately for Clay, if he can’t convince Annie to join his summer tour, his music label is going to drop him. That’s what happens when your bad boy image turns into bad boy reality. Annie has been avoiding the spotlight after her parents’ tragic death, except on her skyrocketing YouTube channel. Clay’s label wants to land Annie, and Clay has to make it happen. Swayed by Clay’s undeniable charm and good looks, Annie and her band agree to join the tour. From the start fans want them to be more than just tour mates, and Annie and Clay can’t help but wonder if the fans are right. But if there’s one part of fame Annie wants nothing to do with, it’s a high-profile relationship. She had a front row seat to her parents’ volatile marriage and isn’t interested in repeating history. If only she could convince her heart that Clay, with his painful past and head over heels inducing tenor, isn’t worth the risk.

3. We Were Beautiful by Heather Hepler

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Release Date: April 2, 2019

Summary: It’s been a year since fifteen-year-old Mia Hopkins was in the car crash that killed her older sister and left her terribly scarred. The doctors tell her she was lucky to survive. Her therapist says it will take time to heal. The police reports claim there were trace amounts of alcohol in her bloodstream. But no matter how much she tries to reconstruct the events of that fateful night, Mia’s memory is spotty at best. She’s left with accusations, rumors, and guilt so powerful it could consume her. As the rest of Mia’s family struggles with their own grief, Mia is sent to New York City to spend the summer with a grandmother she’s never met. All Mia wants to do is hide from the world, but instead she’s stuck with a summer job in the bustling kitchens of the cafe down the street. There she meets Fig–blue-haired, friendly, and vivacious–who takes Mia under her wing. As Mia gets to know Fig and her friends–including Cooper, the artistic boy who is always on Mia’s mind–she realizes that she’s not the only one with a painful past. Over the summer, Mia begins to learn that redemption isn’t as impossible as she once thought, but her scars inside run deep and aren’t nearly so simple to heal … especially when Mia finally pieces together her memories of the night Rachel died.

4. The Lost by Natasha Preston

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Release Date: April 2, 2019

Summary: In the small town of Aurora, teens go missing all the time. But when one of Piper and Hazel’s classmates disappears, they become determined to find out the truth of what happened to her. While investigating, they meet three handsome and rich grad students…who kidnap them. The girls are taken to a building in the middle of a privately-owned forest. The building isn’t just designed to keep them locked away—every room is a test in survival. And Piper and Hazel won’t give up without a fight.

5. The Center of the Universe by Ria Voros

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Release Date: April 2, 2019

Summary: Grace Carter’s mother — the celebrity news anchor GG Carter — is everything Grace is not. GG is a star, with a flawless wardrobe and a following of thousands, while Grace — an aspiring astrophysicist — is into stars of another kind. She and her mother have always been in different orbits. Then one day GG is just … gone. Cameras descend on their house, news shows speculate about what might have happened and Grace’s family struggles to find a new rhythm as they wait for answers. While the authorities unravel the mystery behind GG’s disappearance, Grace grows closer to her high school’s golden boy, Mylo, who has faced a black hole of his own. She also uncovers some secrets from her mother’s long-lost past. The more Grace learns, the more she wonders. Did she ever really know her mother? Was GG abducted … or did she leave? And if she left, why?

6. Every Moment After by Joseph Moldover

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Release Date: April 9, 2019

Summary: Eleven years after a shooting rocked the small town of East Ridge, New Jersey and left eighteen first graders in their classroom dead, survivors and recent high school graduates Matt Simpson and Cole Hewitt are still navigating their guilt and trying to move beyond the shadow of their town’s grief. Will Cole and Matt ever be able to truly leave the ghosts of East Ridge behind? Do they even want to? As they grapple with changing relationships, falling in love, and growing apart, these two friends must face the question of how to move on—and truly begin living.

7. How To Make Friends With the Dark by Kathleen Glasgow

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Release Date: April 9, 2019

Summary: Here is what happens when your mother dies. It’s the brightest day of summer and it’s dark outside. It’s dark in your house, dark in your room, and dark in your heart. You feel like the darkness is going to split you apart. That’s how it feels for Tiger. It’s always been Tiger and her mother against the world. Then, on a day like any other, Tiger’s mother dies. And now it’s Tiger, alone. Here is how you learn to make friends with the dark.

8. In the Neighborhood of True by Susan Kaplan Carlton

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Release Date: April 9, 2019

Summary: After her father’s death, Ruth Robb and her family transplant themselves in the summer of 1958 from New York City to Atlanta—the land of debutantes, sweet tea, and the Ku Klux Klan. In her new hometown, Ruth quickly figures out she can be Jewish or she can be popular, but she can’t be both. Eager to fit in with the blond girls in the “pastel posse,” Ruth decides to hide her religion. Before she knows it, she is falling for the handsome and charming Davis and sipping Cokes with him and his friends at the all-white, all-Christian Club. Does it matter that Ruth’s mother makes her attend services at the local synagogue every week? Not as long as nobody outside her family knows the truth. At temple Ruth meets Max, who is serious and intense about the fight for social justice, and now she is caught between two worlds, two religions, and two boys. But when a violent hate crime brings the different parts of Ruth’s life into sharp conflict, she will have to choose between all she’s come to love about her new life and standing up for what she believes.

9. The Raven’s Tale by Cat Winters

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Release Date: April 16, 2019

Summary: Seventeen-year-old Edgar Poe counts down the days until he can escape his foster family—the wealthy Allans of Richmond, Virginia. He hungers for his upcoming life as a student at the prestigious new university, almost as much as he longs to marry his beloved Elmira Royster. However, on the brink of his departure, all his plans go awry when a macabre Muse named Lenore appears to him. Muses are frightful creatures that lead Artists down a path of ruin and disgrace, and no respectable person could possibly understand or accept them. But Lenore steps out of the shadows with one request: “Let them see me!”

10. All for One by Melissa de la Cruz

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Release Date: April 16, 2019

Summary: 1785. New York, New York. As a young nation begins to take shape, Alexander Hamilton and Elizabeth Schuyler are on top of the world. They’re the toast of the town, keeping New York City buzzing with tales of their lavish parties, of Eliza’s legendary wit, and of Alex’s brilliant legal mind. But new additions to Alex & Eliza’s little family mean change is afoot in the Hamilton household. When they agree to take in an orphaned teenage girl along with Eliza’s oldest brother, John Schuyler, Eliza can’t help but attempt a match. It’s not long before sparks start to fly…if only Eliza can keep herself from interfering too much in the course of true love. After all, she and Alex have an arrival of their own to plan for, though Alex’s latest case brings a perilous threat that may destroy everything.

11. You Must Not Miss by Katrina Leno

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Release Date: April 23, 2019

Summary: Magpie Lewis started writing in her yellow notebook the day her family self-destructed. That was the night Eryn, Magpie’s sister, skipped town and left her to fend for herself. That was the night of Brandon Phipp’s party. Now, Magpie is called a slut whenever she walks down the hallways of her high school, her former best friend won’t speak to her, and she spends her lunch period with a group of misfits who’ve all been socially exiled like she has. And so, feeling trapped and forgotten, Magpie retreats to her notebook, dreaming up a place called Near. Near is perfect–somewhere where her father never cheated, her mother never drank, and Magpie’s own life never derailed so suddenly. She imagines Near so completely, so fully, that she writes it into existence, right in her own backyard. It’s a place where she can have anything she wants…even revenge.

12. Belly Up by Eva Darrows

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Release Date: April 30, 2019

Summary: When 16 year old Serendipity Rodriguez attends a house party to celebrate the end of sophomore year, she has no intention of getting drunk and hooking up with a guy she’s just met, let alone getting pregnant. To make matters worse, she has no way of contacting the father and she and her mother are about to move to a new town and in with her grandmother. It’s hard enough to start your junior year as the new kid in school, but at 5-months pregnant it’s even harder. So when Sara meets Leaf, who asks her out and doesn’t seem to care that she’s pregnant, she finds herself falling. Juggling the realities of a pregnancy with school and a new relationship are hard enough, but when Jack, the father of her baby, turns back up, Sara’s life goes from complicated to a complete mess. With the help of her overbearing mother and grandmother, Sara will learn to navigate life’s challenges and be ready for anything, as she prepares for the birth of her baby.


Those are my twelve most anticipated releases of April 2019!

What are your anticipated reads for this month? Let me know in the comments!

Thanks for reading!


NEXT POST: Dark of the Moon by Tracey Barrett Review

CR: Dark of the Moon by Tracy Barrett

March Wrap-Up!

Hello, readers!

I’ve actually been pretty impressed with myself this year in terms of reading. March is usually the time of year where my goals kind of fall to the side, and I end up only reading two or three books.

This March, though, I read six (!!) books!

Let’s get started!


1. The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O’Neill

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Series: N/A

Rating: 4/5

Dates Read: February 22, 2019

Summary: After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives—and eventually her own.

2. Meet Cute: Some People Are Destined to Meet by Various Authors

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Series: N/A

Rating: 4/5

Dates Read: March 6-8, 2019

Summary: Whether or not you believe in fate, or luck, or love at first sight, every romance has to start somewhere. MEET CUTE is an anthology of original short stories featuring tales of “how they first met” from some of today’s most popular YA authors.
Readers will experience Nina LaCour’s beautifully written piece about two Bay Area girls meeting via a cranky customer service Tweet, Sara Shepard’s glossy tale about a magazine intern and a young rock star, Nicola Yoon’s imaginative take on break-ups and make-ups, Katie Cotugno’s story of two teens hiding out from the police at a house party, and Huntley Fitzpatrick’s charming love story that begins over iced teas at a diner. There’s futuristic flirting from Kass Morgan and Katharine McGee, a riveting transgender heroine from Meredith Russo, a subway missed connection moment from Jocelyn Davies, and a girl determined to get out of her small town from Ibi Zoboi. Jennifer Armentrout writes a sweet story about finding love from a missing library book, Emery Lord has a heartwarming and funny tale of two girls stuck in an airport, Dhonielle Clayton takes a thoughtful, speculate approach to pre-destined love, and Julie Murphy dreams up a fun twist on reality dating show contestants.

3. Crown of Feathers by Nicki Pau Preto

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Series: Crown of Feathers, #1

Rating: 5/5

Dates Read: February 26-March 11, 2019

Summary:  In a world ruled by fierce warrior queens, a grand empire was built upon the backs of Phoenix Riders—legendary heroes who soared through the sky on wings of fire—until a war between two sisters ripped it all apart. Sixteen years later, Veronyka is a war orphan who dreams of becoming a Phoenix Rider from the stories of old. After a shocking betrayal from her controlling sister, Veronyka strikes out alone to find the Riders—even if that means disguising herself as a boy to join their ranks. Just as Veronyka finally feels like she belongs, her sister turns up and reveals a tangled web of lies between them that will change everything. And meanwhile, the new empire has learned of the Riders’ return and intends to destroy them once and for all.

Read my review!

4. Places No One Knows by Brenna Yovanoff

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Series: N/A

Rating: 5/5

Dates Read: March 9-13, 2019

Summary: Waverly Camdenmar spends her nights running until she can’t even think. Then the sun comes up, life goes on, and Waverly goes back to her perfectly hateful best friend, her perfectly dull classes, and the tiny, nagging suspicion that there’s more to life than student council and GPAs. Marshall Holt is a loser. He drinks on school nights and gets stoned in the park. He is at risk of not graduating, he does not care, he is no one. He is not even close to being in Waverly’s world. But then one night Waverly falls asleep and dreams herself into Marshall’s bedroom—and when the sun comes up, nothing in her life can ever be the same. In Waverly’s dreams, the rules have changed. But in her days, she’ll have to decide if it’s worth losing everything for a boy who barely exists.

5. All Rights Reserved by Gregory Scott Katsoulis

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Series: Word$, #1

Rating: 2.8/5

Dates Read: March 13-25, 2019

Summary: Speth Jime is anxious to deliver her Last Day speech and celebrate her transition into adulthood. The moment she turns fifteen, Speth must pay for every word she speaks, for every nod, for every scream and even every gesture of affection. She’s been raised to know the consequences of falling into debt, and can’t begin to imagine the pain of having her eyes shocked for speaking words that she’s unable to afford. But when Speth’s friend Beecher commits suicide rather than work off his family’s crippling debt, she can’t express her shock and dismay without breaking her Last Day contract and sending her family into Collection. Rather than read her speech—rather than say anything at all—she closes her mouth and vows never to speak again, sparking a movement that threatens to destroy her, her family and the entire city around them.

6. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

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Series: N/A

Rating: 4/5

Dates Read: March 25-30, 2019

Summary; Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan’s life. Having missed her flight, she’s stuck at JFK airport and late to her father’s second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley’s never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport’s cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he’s British, and he’s sitting in her row. A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?


Those are all the books that I read in March 2019!

While I don’t think I should expect to read this many books every month, I’m definitely proud of myself for reading six books in a month.

Thanks for reading!


NEXT POST: Anticipated April Releases

CR: Dark of the Moon by Tracy Barrett

Crown of Feathers by Nicki Pau Preto Review!

Started: February 26, 2019

Finished: March 11, 2019

Rating: 5/5

Summary: In a world ruled by fierce warrior queens, a grand empire was built upon the backs of Phoenix Riders—legendary heroes who soared through the sky on wings of fire—until a war between two sisters ripped it all apart. Sixteen years later, Veronyka is a war orphan who dreams of becoming a Phoenix Rider from the stories of old. After a shocking betrayal from her controlling sister, Veronyka strikes out alone to find the Riders—even if that means disguising herself as a boy to join their ranks. Just as Veronyka finally feels like she belongs, her sister turns up and reveals a tangled web of lies between them that will change everything. And meanwhile, the new empire has learned of the Riders’ return and intends to destroy them once and for all.


I often feel like while I read a lot, and I read a lot of different books, I stick with books that tend to fall within a certain genre. In 2018, I read a lot of contemporaries. While I love contemporaries, and I read a lot of really good contemporaries, I wanted to branch out a little more this year.

I got Crown of Feathers in my February OwlCrate box, and I immediately noticed that it was a fantasy novel in a brand new world. Now, if you know me, you know it takes me ages to get into a fantasy novel that requires world-building. It can take me a month or more to finish a fantasy novel, but this one sounded intriguing. A novel about people who ride phoenixes and a girl who pretends to be a boy in order to fulfill her dreams of being a Phoenix Rider? I was sold.

And I loved it.

I don’t love a lot of fantasy novels because of my struggles with reading them, but from the start I was absolutely in love with Crown of Feathers.

First, the characters.

The characters in this book were phenomenal. I love character-driven novels, and characters are often my main complaint with fantasy novels. I feel like character and character development usually gets lost among the spectacle and world-building of fantasy novels. This novel did such an amazing job of developing every single character. I cared about all of them, even the villains, and I felt like Nicki Pau Preto really took care with how she portrayed all of them.

Veronyka was my favorite character, but really I had a hard time picking a favorite. All of the characters were so engaging and had such good arcs that I really couldn’t pick a favorite until I started writing this review.

Second, the world.

If I had to pick one thing that was a little less than stellar to me, it was the world-building. While the world was definitely intriguing, it was a bit confusing at times. I’m hoping all my confusion will be addressed in the second book, so I don’t want to complain too much about the world right now.

Finally, the plot.

I LOVED this story. I don’t want to say too much about it, because I reallyyyy don’t want to spoil anything about this book because I think everyone should read it, but I will say that the twist took me almost completely by surprise. I only predicted it about a page and a half before the reveal, so I was impressed by the twist.

I loved how the story was told, through alternating POVs and with little bits about Avalkyra Ashfire at the beginning of every chapter. It was really interesting, and while I’ve seen it done before, it felt very new and creative to me.

Overall, I highly recommend this book. I think everyone should read it, so if you haven’t, get your hands on a copy and give it a try. I absolutely can’t wait for the sequel, and you can definitely expect a review whenever I get my hands on it.


That’s it for my thoughts on Crown of Feathers!

I hope you decide to give it a chance!

Thanks for reading!


NEXT POST: March Wrap-Up

CR: Dark of the Moon by Tracy Barrett