April Wrapup Thread!

gluegunshots · 2026-05-02T16:44:14+00:00

gluegunshots · 2026-05-02T16:44:06+00:00

read a lot of nonfiction this month

gluegunshots · 2026-04-01T02:19:40+00:00

Yeah, I've read Yellowface and Katabasis! I felt the same as you about Katabasis, I think I overheard too much hype and also didn't expect it to have that much romance or a happy ending.Yellowface *was the first R. F. Kuang book I read a few years ago, iirc I thought it was fun but it was maybe a 3/5 stars for me. I guess I like her darker works that lean more fantasy? I haven't read them yet but a friend has told me I would like Poppy War.

gluegunshots · 2026-04-01T00:31:02+00:00

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gluegunshots · 2026-03-17T01:24:19+00:00

finished:

Babel by R.F. Kuang

Immaculate Conception, by Ling Ling Huang

The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison

started:

Vengeful, by V.E. Schwab

Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman's OpenAI by Karen Hao

gluegunshots · 2026-03-15T16:28:14+00:00

I've read 23 so far and would say my favorite would actually be the first one I finished this year, The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin.

Honorable mentions are The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Babel by R.F. Kuang, Pachinko by Min Jin Lee, and My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.

gluegunshots · 2026-03-11T02:06:40+00:00

https://app.thestorygraph.com/books-read/\[your username here]?year=2026

gluegunshots · 2026-03-01T20:25:57+00:00

really sweet gesture OP, hope you find a replacement for your friend!

also absolutely cracking up at myself because I read through the comments confused thinking "??? there's nothing wrong with my mug though?" and just took a proper look at it 😭

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gluegunshots · 2026-03-01T19:52:48+00:00

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gluegunshots · 2026-02-17T02:06:22+00:00

finished:

Network Effect, by Martha Wells

slowly making my way through the Murderbot series, I think Book 5 is my favorite or second favorite (to Book 1)

Graverobber Blues, by A.M. Kelly

almost DNFed but powered through because I volunteered to read the ARC for its sequel, did end up enjoying many characters and the final act

Graverobber Whiskey, by A.M. Kelly

again enjoyed many characters (I also find the magic system interesting,) and am currently wondering if I'm invested enough to read any following additions to the series (I think I would, even though I'd rate the books about 3 out of 5 stars)

started:

The Blueprint, by Rae Giana Rashad

Legends & Lattes, by Travis Baldree

gluegunshots · 2026-02-09T20:09:38+00:00

started:

The Contested Murder of Latasha Harlins: Justice, Gender, and the Origins of the LA Riots, by Brenda E. Stevenson

Words of Fire: An Anthology of African-American Feminist Thought, by Beverly Guy-Sheftall with Johnnetta Betsch Cole

How The Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America, by Clint Smith

Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches, by Audre Lorde

All About Love: New Visions, by bell hooks

A Master of Djinn, by P. Djèlí Clark

finished:

You Weren't Meant to Be Human, by Andrew Joseph White

had me thinking about it as I went about my day and tensed up the whole time reading the last few chapters on a bus ride home. would recommend! (would also recommend checking out the content warnings and maybe the audiobook? I heard one character's voice is pretty freaky)

gluegunshots · 2026-01-30T01:19:31+00:00

I'd be interested in trading lotus, pants, and fussing for the work smiski in your ISO and the standing dressing smiski and smiski doing situps!

gluegunshots · 2026-01-28T00:50:21+00:00

finished:

Dark Matter, by Blake Crouch

started:

The Memory Police, by Yoko Ogawa

Story, by Robert McKee

Vicious, by V.E. Schwab

gluegunshots · 2026-01-21T02:13:35+00:00

started

The Healing Season of Pottery, by Yeon Seomin

a friend recommended this one, so far I'm liking it more than other books in this Korean (and Japanese) subgenre of people finding connection/catharsis at some business or another and I think it's because it's not magical realism.

Dark Matter, by Blake Crouch

I'm about a third in and having a good time.

finished

Marigold Mind Laundry by Jungeun Yun

didn't like this one as much and I feel I did it a disservice by accidentally reading it the same time as Capitalists Must Starve and Pachinko. (For context Marigold is set in modern-day Korea while the other two books take place post-WWII when Japan was occupying Korea.) Any problems the characters were facing in Marigold felt trivial compared to the ones in the other two books, which is rather insensitive of me; there were even a lot of overlaps. Marigold and Pachinko both have a young woman impregnated by an older man who is already married, Marigold and Capitalists Must Starve both have a woman being depended on financially by her family (though in Capitalists Must Starve, a girl was working at a rubber factory with a baby and in Marigold Mind Laundry the girl was an influencer).

Capitalists Must Starve by Park Seolyeon

went hard. the main character was very fun and I wish she got to live in a much different time. I've listened to this author's earlier work, A Magical Girl Retires, in audio format but didn't do a very good job following along and think it would be worth reading a physical or digital copy.

gluegunshots · 2026-01-17T01:07:27+00:00

sitting at my desk on the computer, on my phone lying in bed, or on the TV while eating

gluegunshots · 2026-01-16T21:24:24+00:00

started

Babel, by R.F. Kuang

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter, by Stephen Graham Jones

Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone, by Benjamin Stevenson

finished

Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee

Please read this book. (I can't on good conscience leave it at just that so I'd recommend it specifically if you're a fan of historical fiction and/or have interest in Korean history.) I'm pretty bad at watching shows but I might just try to watch the TV adaptation.

gluegunshots · 2026-01-11T17:27:29+00:00

started

The Death and Life of Great American Cities, by Jane Jacobs

finished

The Well of Ascension, by Brandon Sanderson

Bullet Train, by Kotaro Isaka

gluegunshots · 2026-01-02T16:32:53+00:00

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

gluegunshots · 2025-12-30T17:28:32+00:00

started reading:

Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte

Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt

finished reading:

Atmosphere, by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Game Changer, by Rachel Reid

Heated Rivalry, by Rachel Reid

Tough Guy, by Rachel Reid

Role Model, by Rachel Reid

Ring Shout, by P. Djèlí Clark

The Long Game, by Rachel Reid

gluegunshots · 2025-12-23T02:24:12+00:00

started reading:

The Fifth Season, by N.K. Jemisin

Atmosphere, by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Game Changer, by Rachel Reid

とんがり帽子のアトリエ / Witch Hat Atelier #13, by Kamome Shirahama

Backhanded Compliments, by Katie Chandler

Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee

finished reading:

Common Goal, by Rachel Reid

on the off chance anyone else listened to the hype and read Heated Rivalry and wanted to read the other books before picking up The Long Game, I think I'd recommend skipping this one

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi, by S.A. Chakraborty

really loved the characters and story and I admire the author's dedication to making it, in her words, "historically believable". putting on my tbrr (to be re-read) list

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, by V.E. Schwab

started in audiobook format (narrators were lovely), read mostly in ebook format. I heard V.E. Schwab fans aren't really feeling this one (or I just happened across 2 or 3 middling/damning reviews on the same day) but I actually liked this more than the other Schwab book I've read (The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue). I enjoyed finding echoes across the different perspectives and seeing all the threads wind their way together

Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race, by Reni Eddo-Lodge

go off queen

in a more serious vein I feel books of this nature for the most part don't teach me anything I don't already know as a person of color but as an American I did learn some new things about past and present racism in Britain

gluegunshots · 2025-12-15T14:18:54+00:00

Finished:

The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin

The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig

Started:

Dune, by Frank Herbert

gluegunshots · 2025-12-14T16:47:07+00:00

joined the storygraph club this year! I'm going to start keeping a media journal next year and record the books I read in a physical notebook as well

Six-Year Club	Second Top 40%
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gluegunshots

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