What I read in April

It's time to tell you all about what I read last month. April I have to say was a disappointing month of reading, my own fault. With the Easter holidays to contend with and my sudden addiction to watching Pretty Little Liars, reading books sort of went on the back burner but I do have a few books to share with you.

How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

I am old. That is the first thing to tell you. The thing you are least likely to believe. If you saw me you would probably think I was about forty, but you would be very wrong.

Tom Hazard has a dangerous secret.

He may look like an ordinary 41-year-old, but owing to a rare condition, he's been alive for centuries. From Elizabethan England to Jazz Age Paris, from New York to the South Seas, Tom has seen a lot, and now craves an ordinary life. Always changing his identity to stay alive, Tom has the perfect cover - working as a history teacher at a London comprehensive. Here he can teach the kids about wars and witch hunts as if he'd never witnessed them first-hand. He can try and tame the past that is fast catching up with him.

The only thing Tom mustn't do is fall in love.

I was gifted this book via Netgalley and chose it as my book of the month in March, you can read my full review here but in short an absolute must read.

The Second Sister by Claire Kendal

It is ten years since Ella's sister Miranda disappeared without trace, leaving her young baby behind. Chilling new evidence links Miranda to the horrifying Jason Thorne, now in prison for murdering several women. Is it possible that Miranda knew him?

At thirty, Miranda’s age when she vanished, Ella looks uncannily like the sister she idolized. What holds Ella together is her love for her sister’s child and her work as a self-defence expert helping victims.

Haunted by the possibility that Thorne took Miranda, and driven by her nephew’s longing to know about his mother, Ella will do whatever it takes to uncover the truth – no matter how dangerous…

Another book coming from Netgalley, I was really impressed by this one. Suspense, mystery, a book to really get you thinking. You can see my full thought over on goodreads.

Fallen Crest Home by Tijan

It’s been years since my mother was in my life.

I healed.

I learned to accept love.

I lived.

That’s all done. She was away, and now she’s back.

I avoided her for a year and a half, but I couldn’t hide anymore.

Mason had an internship in Fallen Crest, so we headed back for the summer.

And when we got there—no one was prepared for what happened.

This is one of my all time favourite authors and this is the 6th book in a series, one that I've been following for a long time. I read this book in under 3 hours, I'll admit it does have sex scenes so not for everyone but for anyone that likes that sort of thing I recommend reading this series from the beginning.

Perfect by Cecelia Ahern

Celestine North lives in a society that demands perfection. After she was branded Flawed by a morality court, Celestine's life has completely fractured – all her freedoms gone.

Since Judge Crevan has declared her the number one threat to the public, she has been a ghost, on the run with the complicated, powerfully attractive Carrick, the only person she can trust. But Celestine has a secret – one that could bring the entire Flawed system crumbling to the ground.

Judge Crevan is gaining the upper hand, and time is running out for Celestine. With tensions building, Celestine must make a choice: save only herself, or risk her life to save all the Flawed. And, most important of all, can she prove that to be human in itself is to be Flawed…? 

Having read the first book Flawed, I have been impatiently waiting for the Sequel Perfect and let me tell you it did not disappoint. I already adored this author and these books only made me love her more.

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

You can't stop the future.
You can't rewind the past.
The only way to learn the secret . . . is to press play.

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker--his classmate and crush--who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah's voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out why. 


Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah's pain, and as he follows Hannah's recorded words throughout his town, what he discovers changes his life forever.

Now I'll admit I watched the TV show before reading the book and actually for once I found that the TV adaption was better than the book, that's not to say that the novel wasn't good, I just felt it wasn't as powerful as seeing it acted out on screen.

So that's it, five books for the month which in the end wasn't bad considering I didn't dedicate as much time to reading as I usually would. As always I appreciate more book recommendations in the comments below.