April 2018 Etc.
Wow did April fly by! It's finally getting warm out, so I think the colder weather tricked me into thinking May was further away than it really was. Also, it's impossible to live in a place that has seasons without opening up your blog post talking about the weather. Fact. Here are a couple of my favorites from the month!
NEW TO THE TBR PILE
The Other Woman | Sandie Jones | Expect to see this one everywhere later this year.
Neverwhere | Neil Gaiman | FINALLY picking up my first Neil Gaiman book after on recommendation of Adam from the Professional Book Nerds.
Two Steps Forward | Graeme Simsion & Anne Buist | I had no idea Graeme Simsion was coming out with a new book! I loved The Rosie Project and think this would be a nice feel good.
NEW TO THE BOOKSHELF
I went a little overboard this month, per usual. Book of the Month had especially enticing choices and a couple of publishers sent review copies to me, so... just building my collection!
The Other Woman | Sandie Jones | Emily loves Adam, and Adam seems like the perfect man. Except for his mother, Pammie, who will not stop until Emily is out of the picture... for good. #partner
Match Made in Manhattan | Amanda Stauffer | Serial monogamist Alison finds herself unexpectedly single after two, dead end long term relationships. She decides to try online dating and finds herself in the throes of dating in the digital age. #partner
Baby Teeth | Zoje Stage | This is another book that I've been seeing all over Instagram. The premise reminds me so much of We Need to Talk About Kevin. Little Hanna is downright cruel to her mother, but only acts that way when her father isn't around. Mom paranoid, but also feel that Hanna really might be trying to kill her.
Circe | Madeline Miller | There were so many enticing choices for Book of the Month this month, so I didn't pick this one up there, but I jumped on it when I saw that it was $3 on Amazon! Looks like it was a mistake that help land the book of the New York Times list.
Our Kind of Cruelty | People had lots of opinions about this one on my Instagram! And I love it. It sounds super messed up- basically, a man is obsessed with a woman from his past and has sculpted his life to become the man of her dreams... but she's marrying someone else. But she's just playing their game, right? Very creepy, but I love when we get to hear directly from the sociopath.
Then She Was Gone | Lisa Jewell | Jewell's last book, I Found You, was one of my favorite books of 2018 so I have high hopes for this! And the early reviews are telling me it's a good one.
The Oracle Year | Charles Soule | This was one that I immediately picked up after reading the synopsis- a 20 something New Yorker wakes up with the ability to predict the future. He posts the predictions anonymously online, as one does, but quickly finds himself having made both money and enemies. It's on Hoopla now if you're interested!
Force of Nature | Jane Harper | Yay, the sequel to The Dry! I really liked Detective Aaron Falk and am excited to see what's next for him.
The Fifth to Die | J. D. Barker | Of course I'm going to read this- I loved the first book in the 4MK Thriller series- The Fourth Monkey, and really can't wait to see what Detective Sam Porter has been up to. Plus, that book ended on a cliffhanger so I have to know what happened!
Stray City | Chelsey Johnson | I'm always looking to read perspectives from authors with difference experiences than mine, so when I heard this was about the queer scene in early 90s Portland, I grabbed it. A woman from a small Midwestern town moves to Portland, finds her people, loses her blood family, and has a baby. Lots of discussion of what make a family and of 90s punk / queer culture. A great debut!
AROUND #Bookstagram
A few of my favorite Bookstagram accounts!
PRODUCTS
Soo... there's only 72 days until our wedding, so I'm in a full panic mode at most times. There's still so much to do! Thankfully, a friend of mine is also planning a wedding and introduced me to an app- Wedding Happy. It's giving me all of the things that The Knot was not- an ability to add payment due dates as well as tasks, a cost per guest, a place to easily budget and make payments, and a grid showing me how many tasks are completed and how many are left. 60 tasks to go.... but seriously, if you're getting married I can't recommend this enough! And it's free.
I don't know about you, but I'm a skincare junkie. So when I found out I was lucky enough to receive a Lancôme Skin Feels Good Voxbox from Influenster, I was thrilled. I've tried some of their products before and really like them so was happy to try more! There's the Advanced Genifique Skin Youth Activating Serum that I use every day. It's pretty light weight and sinks into the skin quickly, which I like. The Skin Feels Good foundation is lighter than what I would normally use, but it's great for no makeup makeup days. The Prismatic Plump Lip Gloss was super interesting- the color I had, Bare Glow, has almost a purple shift to it- but ended up being very natural and glossy without irritating my lips like some plumping glosses do. Finally, the Renergie Lift Multi-Action Ultra Firming and Dark Spot Correction Moisturizer is probably my favorite product of the group. (Why are there so many words in its title?) It's got that strong Lancome scent, but it doesn't irritate my skin and eyes like some moisturizers with sunscreen do and it makes my skin really soft. And it has SPF 30- win! Thank you again to Influester for sending the products complimentary for my review.
LISTENED
I rekindled my love for the My Favorite Murder podcast after the thrill that was The Golden State Killer story. (Just Google it if you don't know what I'm talking about). The book, I'll Be Gone in the Dark, is a smash hit and I am totally shocked that he was caught just a couple of months after its publication. There's no way that's coincidence. SSDGM!
WATCHED
Photo credit Variety
Killing Eve | Oh, to have Sandra Oh on my TV again. I loved her in Grey's and I think she's a fantastic actress, so when I saw a commercial for Killing Eve I was intrigued. Then when I found that it was about a female assassin and a detective... I immediately had to see if I had BBC America. The series just started and is only a couple of episodes in, so if you are looking for a new show I highly recommend this. Oh, and it's not for the sensitive... there are some pretty brutal scenes. But Oh makes it palatable.
What were your favorite discoveries this month?
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