I feel like the theme of this year is going to be “time is moving really fast.” Every time I blink, it’s like another month has passed.

April was a big month over here. My husband and I made some big moves, which we aren’t yet ready to talk about but are very excited about, and professionally, I don’t think I’ve ever been busier. We did our best to get as much time in with family as we could (though it’s never enough), and with Spring here on the east coast, we’ve been trying to spend as much time outside as possible after such a long and dreadful winter. We’ve resumed our beach walks, which are probably my favourite thing in the whole world and started to prep our gardens and yards. This year, we’re growing seven different kinds of herbs on our back deck, and I absolutely cannot wait for Pat to cook them! One of the many benefits of being married to a chef 😊.

Aside from all of this, April was also a great month for reading. It started off slow, and I actually DNF’d a book for the first time in a long time, but I picked up a short YA trilogy that catapulted me out of my slump and onto a roll. Without further ado:

Books Read in April 2023

There were a lot of seriously great books that I read or listened to in April. These included:

1. Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree: I’d never used (or understood) the term “cozy fantasy” until I read this book, but that’s exactly what this was. Light on plot and heavy on vibes, this book had me wanting to open my own café. I rated it 3.5 stars and my full review is here.
2. The Shadow and Bone Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo: it’s not very often I read an entire series from start to finish, back-to-back, but I simply could not put this one down. Leigh Bardugo is an auto-buy author for me at this point, I could read 100 books about this universe. I rated each book between 4-5 stars, and my reviews are here: Shadow and Bone, Siege and Storm, Ruin and Rising
3. Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan: I almost can’t believe that this was only one book when you consider how much plot is packed into it, but wow, I loved it. It’s such a gorgeous fantasy weaved with Chinese mythology and a badass female main character. I rated this one 5-stars and my full review can be found here.
4. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller: this was another one that was light on plot and heavy on feelings. The story was tragic and beautiful, but a bit slow for me. I listened on audiobook so perhaps would have felt a little swifter if I’d read it myself, but regardless, I very much understand why so many are such big fans. I rated this one 3-stars.
5. The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty: this was one of my favourite books of the year so far. Amina is an incredible female lead, among my favourites of all-time, and Chakraborty has once again created an absolute masterpiece of fantasy, world-building, loveable characters, and interwoven cultures and history. I cannot recommend this one enough, I rated it 5-stars and my full review is here.
6. Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman: I know so many people who view this one as a fantasy classic and now that I’ve read it, I totally get why. It was heavily character-centric, with rotating perspectives and magic that felt more like a subtle emphasis then the entire focus. I really enjoyed this one, my full review should be up later this week!

TBR Lists

As always, I added a bunch of new books to my TBR this month, but honestly, I felt like I was quite restrained compared to some months. It might have been because I spent a good chunk of time completely and obsessively immersed in the Grishaverse, but who knows. Regardless, these are the books I added to my TBR in April:

1. The Power by Naomi Alderman: a book about a world where suddenly, teenage girls have immense physical power. I have a friend currently reading this one with a book club and it sounded so interesting I had to add it to my TBR list.
2. The River of Silver: Tales from the Daevabad Trilogy by SA Chakraborty: somehow I missed this Daevabad release?! If you’ve been here awhile, you’ll know the Daevabad Trilogy is one of my favourite fantasy series of all-time. I have no idea how it is I didn’t catch this release in 2022 but I must now obtain it ASAP.
3. One For My Enemy by Olivie Blake: in NYC, two rival witch familiar fight to maintain control of their respective criminal ventures. I love Olivie Blake, The Atlas Six and Alone With You In The Eather are among some of my favourites, so for that reason alone I added her latest release to my TBR.
4. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros: this one is making the rounds on Instagram right now as everyone reading ARCs posts about it, and it sounds incredibly intriguing. It’s about a war college for dragon riders where students have to earn their right to the beasts. Very promising premise, can’t wait to read this one.
5. A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross: a story about capricious spirits that rule an isle through the elements, and a series of disappearances of young girls. I’ve seen this one shared by a few people now and have heard only good things.
6. Happy Hour by Marlowe Granados: a story about a 21-year old adventuring through New York City in the summer. This one sounds very vibe-y and like a perfect introduction to warmer weather.
7. Inferno: A Memoir of Motherhood and Madness by Catherine Cho: a story of a new mother who, while travelling through the US, is committed to a psych ward for postpartum psychosis, and then needs to rebuild her identity. This one sounds both interesting and heart-wrenching, a great combination for nonfiction.

What I’m Loving Right Now

Something about spring just has me feeling so alive again. I’m excited to get out of bed, to get outside, to actually feel the sun on my face. It’s improved my mood tenfold, and made everything I love doing even more enjoyable.

This month, I was mostly focused on:

Getting back to beach walks

We’re so fortunate to be so close to the ocean. Whenever my husband and I go for a long, meandering walk on the beach, I always leave feeling 100x better then I did when I arrived. There’s no other cure for the soul like salty air and a pup racing through the waves.

Smoothies and vegetables

When it’s freezing outside and you’re spending all your time cocooned in a warm blanket, the last thing that I feel like having is cold vegetables and an icy fruit smoothie. Now that the weather has improved, so too have our eating habits. We’ve been starting the morning each day with a smoothie and finishing it with salads and barbequed vegetables and I’m already feeling so much better physically because of it.

Playing around with book aesthetics

I’ve been posting here and on Instagram for four months now (!!) and I’m still having just as much fun as the day I started. I spent a bunch of time in April creating a new colour palette, playing with presets and photography, and generally enjoying myself as I tried to shore up the Forests and Fiction brand in a more aesthetically pleasing way. I’m still experimenting with different styles and visuals, but if you head over to my Instagram, I think you can see where things are starting to come together a little more cohesively. It’s been such fun, I can’t wait to keep honing things in May.

So that was April! Here and gone in the blink of an eye, but I’m ready for May and all of the exciting things to come, bookish and otherwise 😊.