Book Club: What I Read In April
Book club is back! April was a busy month for me so reading was not exactly my number one priority, but I did manage to squeeze three books in this month. Considering the first book was over 800 pages, three books is still quite an accomplishment! Here are my thoughts on what I read in April:
Warning: there may be some minimal spoilers ahead- read at your own risk!
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The Priory of the Orange Tree
Name: The Priory of the Orange Tree
Author: Samantha Shannon
Pages: 848
Rating: ★★★
Spice: 🌶
The Priory of the Orange Tree is an intimidating book, mostly because of how huge it is! It is a high fantasy book, which means there are chapters that are from the viewpoint of multiple different characters. Queen Sabran is trying to conceive an heir, and Ead is posing as one of her ladies in waiting in order to protect her from assasins. Across the world, Tané is training to be a dragon rider, but one slip-up puts her entire future in jeopardy. The leaders of the east and west sides of the world haven’t spoken in decades but must come together to prepare for the return of the Nameless One.
Overall, I did enjoy the book. There was a lot of world-building in the beginning, but it was done in a very descriptive and easy-to-read way, which really helps you visualize what it would be like to live there. I also really enjoyed the romance between Sabran and Ead. It was written in a way that provides good representation and is believable, but still maintains the strength and integrity of both women. It always pisses me off when a strong female lead is diminished by the romantic interest in her storyline. This didn’t happen with either Ead or Sabran, and I liked how their relationship progressed throughout the book.
I was a little disappointed in some of the plotlines in the story. There was a ton of build-up right from the start for this big battle with the Nameless one returning, but the entire battle is crammed into the last 50 pages of the book! And even then, I think the battle gets one or two chapters and then it’s just done. There was no real struggle trying to kill him, and he didn’t seem to even be that powerful? It left me feeling like oh, that’s it?? I was also surprised at how easy it was to connect both sides of the world when the time came for it. There was so much information about how long it had been since the East and West were united, to the point where they weren’t even allowed to travel to either side of the world without being executed, yet all it took was Loth showing up and the world leaders automatically agreed to help? It just seemed like it was way too easy.
As well, I wish that Ead and Tané interacted a lot more. They were the two main viewpoints, and both had similar characters and backgrounds. I think they could have developed more of a friendship or at least related to each other more, but we only got a brief meeting towards the end of the book.
Overall, I did really enjoy this book. It took a little while to become fully engrossed in the storyline, but when that happened I found myself excited to continue reading. I rated this book 3/5 stars- good, but not something I’m excited to read again.
Daisy Jones and the Six
Name: Daisy Jones and the Six
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Pages: 532
Rating: ★★★
Spice: -🌶
Usually, I am strictly a fantasy book reader. However, I also have a rule that I need to read the book version of a story before watching the TV show or movie. When I saw that Daisy Jones and the Six was being released on Amazon Prime, I knew I had to read the book ASAP.
Daisy Jones and the Six was a quick read, mostly due to how it’s written. Unlike most books, it is written interview-style. This made for a nice change of pace, although I definitely wouldn’t want to read multiple books in a similar style.
I’m not going to lie… there isn’t much excitement in this book. There weren’t really any big twists that I didn’t see coming, even the ending. I really enjoyed the main characters, and I like how the style of writing lets you delve a bit deeper into how everyone feels about the situation as well as the other characters. I think Daisy was cool but a little annoying, Billy-Dunne was full of himself like I would expect, and the others were just kind of… there.
I definitely did like the ending in the book better than the ending in the show (spoiler- they’re not the same!). I think it gives Daisy a little more credit and she doesn’t just disappear off the face of the earth. I think the only reason I’m giving this book 3/5 instead of 2/5 is because I’m obsessed with the soundtrack of the show. Overall, a light read to cleanse the pallet but not much more.
The Serpent and the Wings of Night
Name: The Serpent and the Wings of Night
Author: Carissa Broadbent
Pages: 532
Rating: ★★★★★
Spice: 🌶🌶
I had really high expectations of this book from the get-go. Booktok was claiming that this was the only book that has made them feel the same way as ACOTAR- and that’s a huge deal if you loved ACOTAR. I had been putting off reading this book until I finished the rest of my TBR, but I finally gave in. And I’m SO glad I did.
Oraya is a human girl who is adopted by a powerful Vampire King named Vincent. Even though Vampires aren’t supposed to feel love, its very apparent Vincent loves Oraya like a daughter. He raises her to be a strong fighter, even without any special powers like all the Vampires surrounding her. She enters the Kejari, which is a huge tournament where Vampires from all over compete to be the last one standing, earning one wish from the goddess of death. She meets Raihn, who she pairs up with to survive and they end up falling in love.
I really liked this book. It was a really good balance between action and romance, and I couldn’t fully figure out the ending twist until I read it. The tournament reminds me of the trials Feyre faces in ACOTAR, or even the tournament Celaena enters in Throne of Glass. It was packed full of adventure and suspense, and even though you can kind of figure the main character is going to make it through until the end, there are still enough twists and turns to keep it entertaining. I do wish we got just a LITTLE more time with the relationship that blossomed with Raihn and Oraya- I feel like it was a little abrupt and we could have experienced some closer moments between the two to strengthen their connection, which would have made their choices at the end even more emotional.
I’ve already started the next book in this series, The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King, so we’ll see if it lives up to the first book. Overall, I put this in my 5/5 tier. I’ll definitely be re-reading this book in the near future because I miss the excitement I felt while I was in it.
What did you read this month? Let me know!
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