May '22 Reading Wrap-Up

Hey hi hello friends, and welcome back to my blog! 

May was such a weird month for me. I talked about it in my reading update last week, but the days really felt stretched to three times their normal time-span. It really threw me off, in all aspects of my life. Also, Mochi was spayed just yesterday, so I've been taking care of her extra hard since she's zonked out of her mind. I mean, she's really really high. The vet gave me sedatives in order to keep her from getting restless, and they're ridiculously strong. She can't even walk (I mean, full on drunk stumbling). I feel so bad for her!

I feel like I hardly read anything this month, but of course that's not true. In the month of May, I read 20 books: 10 novels, 1 novella, 1 poetry collection, 1 graphic novel, 1 nonfiction, and 6 manga volumes. Once again, manga really comes in clutch for numbers. I read some amazing books and some not so great ones. 

Let's get into it, shall we?

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Novels

1. My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix
Genre: Horror, Adult
Star rating: 1.5 out of 5 stars / 2.14 CAWPILE score
Page count: 337 pages
Day(s) read: 5.02 - 5.03
Goodreads thoughts: I didn’t hate it, but I definitely didn’t like it either. It’s not like it was offensive or anything (though there were certainly parts that made me cringe out of anger, embarrassment, etc) but it definitely wasn’t enjoyable. I don’t know, nothing about this book makes me want to keep thinking about it. I will gladly forget about it.

2. Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram - Review Here (ONE DAY READ)
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Queer Romance, Young Adult
Star rating: 4 out of 5 stars / 7.14 CAWPILE score
Page count: 384 pages
Day(s) read: 5.03
Goodreads thoughts: This was absolutely fantastic. Hunter was a great protagonist to read from, he was awkward and insecure and made mistakes like any teenage boy would. I really liked seeing the social justice issues from the perspective of a white MC, because it really made him check the privilege he automatically had.

3. Middlegame by Seanan McGuire
Genre: Science Fiction, Horror, Adult
Star rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars / 8.43 CAWPILE score
Page count: 492 pages
Day(s) read: 5.04 - 5.10
Goodreads thoughts: This is probably one of the most convoluted and complicated books I’ve ever read. Not necessarily confusing, but there is just so much in here that it takes time to process it all. It’s absolutely incredible, really. I hardly have the words to describe it.

4. Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
Genre: Mythology, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Adult
Star rating: 4 out of 5 stars / 7.86 CAWPILE score
Page count: 308 pages
Day(s) read: 5.06 - 5.10
Goodreads thoughts: I really do love Greek retellings, especially when they focus on women and what their lives were like in those times. I was pleased that most of Ariadne’s story took place away from Theseus, since that is where she is most famous from. But her life as Dionysus’s wife is much more fascinating than her scorned days as Theseus’s abandoned bride.

I think that this is a story of madness and love, and how those two emotions are often mistaken for each other. The three women we see in this story (Pasiphae, Ariadne, and Phaedra) all deal with madness in one way or another, and it’s always centered around the love they have in their hearts. It’s a wonderfully written allegory, I think.

5. Frankenstein in Baghdad by Ahmed Saadawi (translated by Jonathan Wright)
Genre: Horror, Literary Fiction, Adult
Star rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars / 6.29 CAWPILE score
Page count: 281 pages
Day(s) read: 5.09 - 5.20
Goodreads thoughts: This was an interesting character study and I really enjoyed the philosophical nature of the book. It raised a lot of questions, like what is the nature of justice and how can we as people achieve it individually, and what does it mean to be human? I never felt very attached to any of the characters, and the writing style wasn't very poetic, but that might just be the translation. I find its hard for translated books to really feel immersive and coerce strong emotion.

6. By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept by Paulo Coelho (translated by Alan R. Clarke)
Genre: Literary Fiction, Adult
Star rating: 4 out of 5 stars / 7.00 CAWPILE score
Page count: 208 pages
Day(s) read: 5.20 - 5.22
Goodreads thoughts: Aside from The Alchemist, this is probably my favorite book of Paulo Coelho's that I've read (so far at least). All of his books are connected to religion in one way or another but I particularly love the discussions of faith and religion in this novel. I like that we see it through the lens of Pilar's life, a woman who had rejected religion for a long time before coming back to it, something I can personally relate to (rather than his other books, which always follow a devout character from the start). I can see this becoming another book that I turn to when I need a comforting read.

7. Ghost Wood Song by Erica Waters
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Queer Fiction, Young Adult
Star rating: 4 out of 5 stars / 7.29 CAWPILE score
Page count: 368 pages
Day(s) read: 5.20 - 5.23
Goodreads thoughts: I really liked this, it was haunting in an old-gothic way. I can see why it's compared to the Raven Cycle, even though there really isn't anything the same about the two books. It's the vibes though, the feelings they evoke. I like that this book explored the stages of grief, and how important it is to truly walk through all of the stages instead of getting hung up on one. Although I'm not sure how this will be continued in a series, it feels very complete to me.

8. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor - Review Here
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Star rating: 5 out of 5 stars / 9.14 CAWPILE score
Page count: 532 pages
Day(s) read: 5.23 - 5.25
Goodreads thoughts: Well, I finally read it. Who’s surprised that I loved it? Anyone? Not me, that’s for sure. This has to be the most mashed-potato book I have ever read. It’s literally the book I’ve had on my TBR shelf the longest, over four years. I’m actually mad that it took me this long to finally pick it up. And it was beautiful and amazing and everything I wanted from it and more. And I can’t even look up art or anything yet because I need to still read the sequel. Ahhhhhh my heart can’t take it!

9. Horrid by Katrina Leno
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Young Adult
Star rating: 3 out of 5 stars / 5.57 CAWPILE score
Page count: 336 pages
Day(s) read: 5.25 - 5.27
Goodreads thoughts: Well, that was just weird. What was that ending? What the heck, man?

I've only read three of Katrina Leno's six novels, but this has to be my least liked. Nothing was really talked about or explained, and like I said, that ending was wack.

10. Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Star rating: 5 out of 5 stars / 9.29 CAWPILE score
Page count: 522 pages
Day(s) read: 5.25 - 5.31
Goodreads thoughts: Ahh, beautiful answers. This was a spectacular ending to this series, and I especially love all the little nods we got about DoSaB. Of course there were a few things that I wish were different (Sarai's ghostliness for one) but you know, I have very little complaints overall. This is very close to being (at least in my eyes) a perfect book.

Novellas

1. Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells
Genre: Science Fiction, Adult
Star rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars / 6.00 CAWPILE score
Page count: 150 pages
Day(s) read: 5.12 - 5.15
Goodreads thoughts: This is probably my least favorite of the series so far, I didn’t feel as connected to the characters or the storyline. I’m excited for the next book though since apparently Murderbot is going back to Dr. Mensah, and I really liked her.

Poetry

1. Time is a Mother by Ocean Vuong
Genre: Literary Fiction, Queer Fiction, Adult
Star rating: N/A
Page count: 128 pages
Day(s) read: 5.20 - 5.21
Goodreads thoughts: Well, once again, Ocean Vuong took my heart and smashed it to little pieces. His writing is so emotional that I can't help getting attached. It's truly a gift, and we as the public are lucky he has decided to share it with us.

Graphic Novels

1. Tidesong by Wendy Xu (ONE DAY READ)
Genre: Fantasy, Coming-of-age, Middle Grade
Star rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Page count: 240 pages
Day(s) read: 5.10
Goodreads thoughts: This was very cute, and I love the art style. There’s not much substance other than it being a story about friendship and overcoming intrusive thoughts, but like I said it’s very cute, and I’m sure younger kids would get a lot out of this.

Nonfiction

1. Pandora's Box: Women in the Greek Myths by Natalie Haynes
Genre: History, Mythology, Adult
Star rating: 4 out of 5 stars / 7.86 CAWPILE score
Page count: 321 pages
Day(s) read: 5.16 - 5.19
Goodreads thoughts: Mm, good soup. I can see this book being a multi-day lecture, with slides of relevant artwork and scenes from plays and translations being written out right then and there. I would absolutely pay for that. I have no complaints, save one: Circe? No? Circe would've been a cool addition to this book, but since she is technically the most famous woman from Greek myth (Natalie's words, not mine (well, mine too)), it makes sense that she wasn't included.

Manga

1. A Polar Bear in Love vol. 1-4 by Koromo
Genre: Queer Fiction, Romance, Humor, Shonen
Star rating: N/A
Page count: 424 pages
Day(s) read: 5.07
Goodreads thoughts: Asdfghjkl that was so adorable what the heck // Ridiculous, I love it

2. Komi Can't Communicate vol. 18 by Tomohito Oda
Genre: Romance, Slice of Life, Shoujo
Star rating: N/A
Page count: 192 pages
Day(s) read: 5.10
Goodreads thoughts: N/A

3. Spy x Family vol. 7 by Tatsuya Endo
Genre: Mystery, Crime, Shonen
Star rating: N/A
Page count: 200 pages
Day(s) read: 5.17
Goodreads thoughts: N/A

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Total page count: 5,423 pages

Favorite book of May: Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

Worst book of May: My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

No DNFs this month

No unfinished books this month

May book haul: Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant

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Okay, that's it for May! We're now heading into summer (hooray, I say with sarcasm) which means I'll be staying inside even more than I already do! I wonder what that will do to my reading. Statistically, June has always been my best reading month, though I'm not sure if I'll top the 31 books from April. 

What was your favorite book of May? Let me know in the comments, or tweet at me @AllyEmReads.

Until next time!