April Recap

Books

Stats:

Books Read: 9

Books DNF'd: 1

Average Rating: 3.6

Most Read Genre: Fantasy & Thriller

Physical Books: 4

Ebooks: 3

Audiobooks: 2

Rereads: 0 

Average Page Count:  417

Highest Rating ★★★★★

The Will of the Many by James Islington

(Not-so) Mini Review:

See my full review here, but needless to say I LOVED this book. This is (so far) my favorite read of 2024. 

Lowest Rating ★★☆☆☆

The New Couple in 5B

Mini Review:

This book started off extremely interesting and I really enjoyed the duel timelines set in the same building. Having been described as a take on Rosemary's Baby, I was expecting something supernatural or at least cultish. While the backbones of the story were somewhat ripped from that movie, I didn't feel like there was real tension involved. It also felt extremely similar to Nestlings, which, while I didn't enjoy either, definitely pulled off the supernatural far better. A really good thriller has antagonists that have a motive that is understandable, no matter how outlandish their actions may be. In this one, by the end, the motives felt last minute and didn't match up with what they were actually doing. This is the second book by this author that I've rated 2 stars, so most likely I will not be continuing with her work.

DNF

In the Quick by Kate Hope Day

Mini Review:

This was supposed to be my choice for the Reddit Bingo square 'Judge a Book by the Cover'. I've learned why I don't do that. When I read, I want to get sucked into it so that I can fully imagine myself in the plot. This book was the exact opposite. Rather than being immersed in this, this felt like a child telling me a story in a way that made it extremely difficult to focus. There were 0 quotations so the conversation was indistinguishable from her inner thoughts and observations.

It was also written in the perspective of an emotionless 12 year old. From the synopsis, I knew a portion would be from the time June was in school. But after over 100 pages and still at this time in her life, I could not continue. I thought this book was going to be about June trying to find the kissing crew, and her time as an adult per the description in the last part of the synopsis. I wouldn't recommend this book to readers expecting space (as an astronaut is on the cover) or a real mystery aspect.

Movies

Stats:

Movies Watched: 4 (slow month)

Most Watched Genre: Horror

Average Rating: 3

Rewatches: 1

Highest Rating ★★★★☆

The Strangers (2008)

Mini Review: 

This is a cult classic for a reason. I remember sneaking into the theater to watch this in high school since I wasn't 17 yet. It was spooky then and it definitely holds up. I'll never be able to watch this when I'm alone.

Lowest Rating ★★☆☆☆

Night Swim (2024)

Mini Review: 

Well...it certainly was a movie about a haunted pool. Not much to say about it other than it took a great concept and a good cast, and became a completely predictable movie with bad CGI pool monsters.

TV

I watched some of the best TV all year this month. Fallout, 3 Body Problem, and Shogun were all killer shows. I liked them in that order. 

I only ever played Fallout: New Vegas so I didn't have much of the backstory that was included in the show. Apparently Lucy's character was created solely for the show, which I think was a great choice since the actress was amazing. One thing I loved about the game is that I could switch to third person. I am TERRIBLE at first person, so when games have that option I'm very appreciative. Let's be honest, I'm bad at third person as well. 

Anyway, the show was so good. It was definitely the best show of the year so far. The acting, the settings, the lore, the practical effects. Everything was amazing. I don't think this show would be good for binging, which I didn't do. I love discussing episodes after watching and the fact that I did watch about two episodes per week made this show that much more exciting. I loved the mystery of the vaults. I wish more of the Brotherhood was explored, since I was left a bit confused about their purpose. It does look like we'll get more of them in season 2, so I'm looking forward to that.