Hi pasta weirdos,
You may be thinking to yourself, “Huh?? It’s already halfway through May! A little late for a post about what you read in April!” To which I would say, “I’m so happy you care that much about my posting schedule and that you are so keenly aware of the passage of time and where we stand in the aforementioned ‘passing’ of the aforementioned ‘time.’”
In reality, I’ve been sick and tired, and sick and tired of being sick and tired. And also doing my paid work. Ever heard of it, honey!!!—please note, this should be read as a full-volume scream in Meg Stalter’s voice. I was also at a beautiful, wonderful wedding this past weekend. Sue me for living my life!!!!!! (Literally no one cares even a little bit about when I post this…).
So here you have it: the first post in a new series called “Everything I Read Last Month.” 10 points if you can guess what it’s about.
Stats
Books: 9
Pages: 3,074
Average Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Genres: thriller, horror, memoir, literary fiction, sci-fi romance
Note: for a synopsis and more info on each book, click the titles below.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
FAMESICK by Lena Dunham
Memoir
Thoughts: Ride or die for Lena Dunham! I love love love her writing, and Girls is one of my top 5 favorite shows of all time (top 3, maybe?? the others being The Leftovers and The OA, duh). Highly recommend reading Famesick as an audiobook because she narrates it herself. Greatly enjoyed reading it and getting to see more of Dunham’s life behind the scenes. Her battle with chronic illness has inspired me to look into my chronic issues, yet again…, in the hopes of a diagnosis and perhaps even some relief (it’s hard not to give up when you keep hitting dead ends, but I’m giving it another shot!).
No rating
ADULT BRACES by Lindy West
Memoir
Thoughts: I don’t know, man. Is there anything I can say about this book that hasn’t already been discoursed to death? I thought it was fine! Their relationship is wild. I know we’re supposed to be like, “whatever works for them!” But is it working for them…? Or more specifically: is it working for Lindy?
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
FREEDOM by Jonathan Franzen
Literary Fiction
Thoughts: Who am I to criticize a Franzen book?? I’m not sure, but I’m going to do it. No, in all honesty, of course I can recognize that this is an incredibly well-written book. The characterizations are insanely deep—Franzen will give the Milk Man who shows up in one scene a clear motivation for a) why he’s a Milk Man, b) why he decided to show up for work on that day in particular, and c) why he plans to quit his job exactly two weeks hence.
He creates characters with exceptional hyper-realism like no other. That said, it was too long for me to be fully invested the whole time. I felt like I was reading this for 7 years (more like 3 weeks). If you like in-depth character studies, then get yourself a copy ASAP!! Freedom was my first of his, and while I do plan to read another, that will certainly not be any time soon.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
THE CARETAKER by Marcus Kliewer
Horror
Thoughts: Didn’t hit for me as much as Kliewer’s other book (We Used to Live Here), still enjoyed this one! Highly atmospheric and genuinely scared me a few times. Fairly quick read that I really liked but didn’t love.
(Disclaimer: Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
GOOD GIRL by Aria Aber
Literary Fiction
Thoughts: Good Girl, good book. I’ll never tire of messy-girl-coming-of-age lit! So much so that I even wrote one such novel myself (publishers, inquire within). This was not a book I tore through, but I didn’t mind that. A compelling dive into identity, what it means to be “from” somewhere, trying to grow up when it all just feels too painful, grief, and abusive relationships. It also grapples with the idea that familial and romantic love can take the shape of violence—whether or not we want to call it “love.”
No rating
THE MINISTRY OF TIME by Kaliane Bradley
Sci-fi, Romance, Thriller-ish
Thoughts: This one may be a case of “just not for me.” For how chaotic and genre-bending the synopsis is, I found myself quite bored. Also, the romance elements didn’t get me, but I’m not a huge romance reader. (ie. I only read books about relationships, but not capital R romance or romcom.)
(Disclaimer: Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
THE CHALK MAN by C.J. Tudor
Dark Thriller
Thoughts: A well-written thriller with developed characters, which is sadly not common in the thriller genre—it’s still thrillers til I die tho. The story had me turning those pages! Definitely recommend it to my dark thriller readers out there.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️.5
THE MAID’S DIARY by Loreth Anne White
Domestic Thriller
Thoughts: This was fine! A fairly quick, easy thriller, but the ending didn’t wow me, and not much of the story has stuck with me.
No rating
BROTHER by Ania Ahlborn
Horror, Thriller
Thoughts: Freaky and disturbing! This was a tough read, but if you’re into all that, then give it a try.
On that note…
ttfn,
Megan
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Interesting. Maybe it’s a generational thing?
The OA mention!!