On My Shelf: Books I Read in April 2025

My reading activity picked up again in April, and there were some winners in the mix!

I only rated one book 5/5 stars — what can I say, I’m a tough audience — but there were enough 4-star reads that I feel more than satisfied with this month’s selection.

Let’s discuss, shall we?

BOOKS I READ IN APRIL – THE SHORT VERSION

• The Nature of Disappearing – Kimi Cunningham Grant ★★★☆☆
• The Good Mother Myth: Unlearning Our Bad Ideas About How to Be a Good Mom – Nancy Reddy ★★★☆☆
• Fragile Designs – Colleen Coble ★★★☆☆
• Killer Story: The Truth Behind True Crime Television – Claire St. Amant ★★★★☆
• Northern Spy – Flynn Berry ★★★★☆
• Trust Her – Flynn Berry ★★★☆☆
• These Silent Woods – Kimi Cunningham Grant ★★★★☆
• What I Ate in One Year (And Related Thoughts) – Stanley Tucci ★★★☆☆
• Double Take – Lynette Eason ★★★★☆
• Go As A River – Shelley Read ★★★★★
• First Lie Wins – Ashley Elston ★★★★☆
• Glucose Revolution: The Life-Changing Power of Balancing Your Blood Sugar – Jessie Inchauspé *not rated
• The House of My Mother: A Daughter’s Quest for Freedom – Shari Franke *not rated
• You Only Die Once: How to Make It to the End with No Regrets – Jodi Wellman ★★★☆☆
• Sleep Reset: The New Tools of Rest & Recovery – Natalie Pennicotte-Collier *not rated

BOOKS I READ IN APRIL – THE LONG VERSION

The Nature of Disappearing – Kimi Cunningham Grant (fiction; thriller) ★★★☆☆

I really wanted to like this book.
The total lack of profanity was refreshing. But I didn’t enjoy the flip-flopping timelines, never felt connected to the main character, and found some plot points underwhelming. It was fine – nothing more, nothing less.

• Summary. Emlyn, an outdoor guide living in an Airstream, has tried to move on from a troubled past and an even more troubled ex-boyfriend. But when he reappears and a mutual friend is in danger, they need to work together — alone and deep in the wilderness. Is it safe to trust him again?
• Trigger warnings. Descriptions of abuse and drug addiction.

The Good Mother Myth: Unlearning Our Bad Ideas About How to Be a Good Mom – Nancy Reddy (non-fiction) ★★★☆☆

3.5 stars, rounded down. (Side note: it continues to drive me crazy Goodreads doesn’t offer half-star ratings.)

Parts of this book were 5/5 — mostly the memoir-style details about Reddy’s own journey through motherhood. But the research-heavy sections dragged, and some topics felt disorganized or underdeveloped.

A specific quibble: One heading titled “From Dr. Spock to Dr. Becky” didn’t mention Dr. Becky at all. Odd.

When Reddy described her own transition into motherhood I was nodding my head like crazy because my introduction to this role was also overwhelming in every way. But there was too much other stuff in the mix to make this read as compelling as I would have liked it to be.

Fragile Designs – Colleen Coble (Christian fiction; thriller)★★★☆☆

Meh. No profanity, and faith-based elements weren’t heavy-handed, but the plot lacked realism and cohesion. Too many tangents and not enough depth in character development. I skimmed the last few chapters.

• Summary. Carly, a grieving widow, finds a priceless Fabergé egg in her grandmother’s attic —uncovering secrets about her late husband and estranged father in the process. Suddenly, her past becomes a threat to her future.
• Trigger warnings. Suicide, infidelity, murder, emotional abuse.

Killer Story: The Truth Behind True Crime Television – Claire St. Amant (non-fiction; true crime; memoir) ★★★★☆

3.5 stars rounded up to 4 because I like the cover. Is that petty?

The first half? Excellent. The rest? A bit long and too bogged down in newsroom politics. Still, a compelling behind-the-scenes look at true crime journalism. A good book, could have been better.

• Trigger warnings. Graphic crime descriptions, profanity.

Northern Spy – Flynn Berry (historical fiction; thriller) ★★★★☆

4.5 stars rounded down to 4.

A slow-burn but engaging novel set in politically volatile Northern Ireland. I finished it in a day, which tends to be a good benchmark for how much I enjoy a book. I think this has the potential to form the basis of a fantastic movie or mini-series.

Some of the prose (especially about motherhood) felt overly poetic and unrealistic to the point of it being distracting. I also think the book would have done well to have a prologue or Note to Readers so those outside the scope of the conflict would have better context for the long-term tensions in Ireland. I appreciated the fact there was limited profanity.

• Summary. Tessa is a new mom who, in addition to balancing the regular challenges of motherhood, is living in the middle of political unrest. Belfast is caught in the crossfire of the IRA and loyalists. One day Tessa spots her sister Marian on the news committing a crime on behalf of the IRA! She refuses to believe her sister could be working for a terrorist organization. But when Tessa learns the truth, she will start doing unexpected and unspeakable things to keep her family safe.
• Trigger warnings. Some profanity, violence.

Trust Her – Flynn Berry (historical fiction; thriller) ★★★☆☆

A weaker follow-up to Northern Spy (read that first – the order really matters). Overused literary techniques and significantly more profanity.

• Summary. Sisters Tessa and Marian are living in Dublin. They’re safe. No one knows about their past, their connections, their crimes. They’ve moved on and their primary focus is tending to their young children. But then one day Tessa is captured, threatened, and forced to become a double agent for the IRA. Who is working for whom? Who can she trust? More importantly, where, when, and how can this dispute possibly end? And could someone she loves become collateral damage?
• Trigger warnings. Profanity, violence.

These Silent Woods – Kimi Cunningham Grant (fiction; thriller) ★★★★☆

A solid read. I wish the “twist” had been more developed — it felt like an afterthought — but I enjoyed the book. There was very little profanity and was clearly written by someone with a faith background.

• Summary. Cooper and his daughter, Finch live off-grid in isolation. No electricity. No family. Just a handful of animals and a whole lot of paranoia. Cooper clearly doesn’t want to be found, but people seem to be looking. First, there’s their nosy neighbour, Scotland, who Finch adores but Cooper distrusts. Then there’s Jake — their one and only friend who comes once a year to drop off supplies. When Jake doesn’t show up, Cooper has to venture out to buy groceries or risk starving over the winter. But that one foray into civilization might just open them up to life-changing encounters with the outside world…
• Trigger warnings. Murder, mild profanity, PTSD.

What I Ate in One Year (And Related Thoughts) – Stanley Tucci (non-fiction; memoir; cookbook) ★★★☆☆

A 3.5 star read. Light, amusing, and easy to dip in and out of. I definitely preferred his previous book, Taste. There was too much name-dropping and no photos, the latter being a real letdown. (If there had been photos, I guarantee it would have received 4/5 stars from me!)

Trigger warnings. Profanity.

Double Take – Lynette Eason (Christian fiction; thriller) ★★★★☆

A strong thriller with faith elements that didn’t feel preachy. I found the ending a bit too predictable, but the writing kept me engaged. I’m planning to read more books by this author.

• Summary: Ever since her fiancé tried to murder her 18 months ago, Lainie has been understandably skittish. She’s trying to move on with her life, but that’s hard to do. She was forced to kill the man she believed she was in love with — so why is she suddenly seeing him everywhere. He’s dead…and it was her hand that pulled the trigger. He can’t be alive. Can he? When Lainie’s path crosses with an old childhood friend, they have to work together to unravel the mystery of what’s going on, or both their lives could be in danger.
• Trigger warnings. Domestic violence, suicide, PTSD.

Go As A River – Shelley Read (historical fiction) ★★★★★

What a gorgeously written book. I can’t believe this is Read’s first novel. It’s a stunning debut, and a bit of a mashup between The Grapes of Wrath and The Berry Pickers. A huge thank you to Ernie for so heartily recommending this book. I’m adding my voice to the chorus of fans! There are plenty of trigger warnings (see below) but it’s an unforgettable story written in beautiful detail.

• Summary. The snap decision to follow a stranger down the street of her small town in Colorado changes Victoria’s life forever. She falls in love at the wrong time with the wrong person. Eventually losing everything – and everybody – Victoria beats the odds but some wounds may never fully heal. Can past wrongs ever be righted?
• Trigger warnings. Profanity, systemic racism, drug/alcohol addiction, miscarriage/infant death.

First Lie Wins – Ashley Elston (fiction, espionage/thriller) ★★★★☆

This was such an entertaining read — lots of twist and turns. It’s more cerebral than many thrillers and does a great job of alternate timelines which can be hard to pull off successfully. My only quibble is the level of profanity (more than I’d like but not over the top).

• Summary: Evie Porter has everything a nice Southern girl could want: a doting boyfriend, a house with a white picket fence, a close-knit group of friends. The only catch…Evie Porter doesn’t exist.
• Trigger warnings: Profanity.

Glucose Revolution: The Life-Changing Power of Balancing Your Blood Sugar (non-fiction; health and wellness) – Jessie Inchauspé *not rated

I don’t feel like I can give this book a star rating in good conscience since it is a fairly prescriptive health plan and I haven’t actually used the author’s method for balancing blood sugar levels.

That said, I thought it was a well-written book. Easy to read, engaging, and her suggestions all feel doable. The premise is about trying to help people prevent glucose spikes which can have all sorts of negative impacts on our overall health. The author gives a basic overview of how glucose is used in our bodies, the impacts blood sugar spikes can have on our physiology and then suggests ten simple hacks (like…really simple!) to moderate glucose levels.

I’m planning to implement some of what she said and will be curious to see if I notice any changes in my energy levels, sleep, etc.

The House of My Mother: A Daughter’s Quest for Freedom (non-fiction; memoir) – Shari Franke *not rated

Sadly, this is yet another memoir about child abuse and manipulation. It’s the story of the Franke family — now infamous vloggers — told from the viewpoint of the eldest child, Shari. I read this book after watching the Disney+ documentary Devil in the Family: the Fall of Ruby Franke).

The writing quality is not that great. But it’s a tragic story and it’s brave of Shari to discuss what happened. That said, I think it would have been helpful to offer more context into the LDS church and what that group believes and how that would have impacted Ruby and her parenting approaches.

Also, I think books like this would always benefit from a longer waiting time between events and publication (Shari started writing this book almost immediately after the major revelations of abuse came out).

• Trigger warnings. Child abuse, emotional, mental, and spiritual manipulation.

You Only Die Once: How to Make It to the End with No Regrets (non-fiction; self-improvement) – Jodi Wellman ★★★☆☆

This book has a lot of great ideas and suggestions, but in my opinion was way too long. There are soooo many bullet points and it started to feel very overwhelming.

The premise is you only die once…but that also means I only live once and I would have liked a much shorter, punchier book. (This clocks in at over 300 pages).

I read the first half word-for-word, but only skimmed the second half because it was starting to feel too long. Which was disappointing because there were some interesting points.

• Trigger warnings: Significant profanity. “Makes” light of death in a way that could be disturbing or upsetting to some.

Sleep Reset: The New Tools of Rest & Recovery – Natalie Pennicotte-Collier *not rated

This is another book I can’t rate in good conscience because I haven’t actually tried applying all the principles in my own life. Thankfully, I don’t have insomnia. But, of course, I’d love to improve my sleep habits!

There wasn’t anything shocking or new in this book, but it provided a good overview of many of the key things negatively impacting our sleep and a fairly straightforward, practical, non-judgemental approach to improving sleep quality and duration. I plan to listen to some of the audio files (which you can access for free via the book).

Your turn:

• Have you read any of these books? What did you think?
• What was the best book you read in April?
• Are you a generous or tough book rater? I’d say I’m pretty tough…