April 2019 | Book Recap & Star Ratings

April 2019 Book Recap & Ratings

book reviews

Month in review & factors in determining a star rating:

Hello! How was your month of reading? April was a mix of some 4 & 5-star favorites and some 3-star books that were just okay. Last week when I was answering some reader questions on Instagram Stories, my friend Emily asked me what factors go into my star ratings for a book.

I thought this was a fantastic question and now that I have been a part of the Bookstagram community for a while now, I have seen that people’s answers for this can vary so much! Here is how I decide what to rate a book I have read…

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⁣ 5 stars mean I loved the book so much that I couldn’t stop thinking about it long after I had finished!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫⁣ 4.5 stars mean I enjoyed it a lot. <3

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⁣ 4 stars mean I highly recommend it and there was maybe a thing or two that gave me pause but all in all I enjoyed it very much.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 3.5 stars mean it was a solid read with a few things that didn’t work for me as a reader.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3 stars mean it was just okay.

⭐️⭐️ 2 stars mean that the book was not for me and I would not recommend it. These are tough ratings for me to give because I really try to be thoughtful about the positives aspects when reviewing a book but sometimes a book just isn’t the right fit. Whenever I write a more “negative” review, I do try to share both the highs and the lows and I also recognize that our own perspectives and even mood can change our reactions to books.

⭐️ I have never rated a book with just 1 star. As a reader, I do think there is something you can get out of everything you read and so I avoid this rating just because I don’t think it allows for a lot of conversation.

How do you rate books? I would love to hear!

My April Book Ratings:

Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

You can see my full review HERE.

Whisper Network by Chandler Baker

⭐️⭐️⭐️

You can see my full review HERE.

Life and Other Inconveniences by Kristan Higgins

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

*Full review coming soon.

Trophy Life by Lea Gellar

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

You can see my full review HERE.

To have and To Hold by Molly Millwood Ph.D.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

*Full review coming soon.

Miracle Creek by Angie Kim

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

You can see my full review HERE.

I Miss You When I Blink by Mary Laura Philpott

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

You can see my full review HERE.

Things My Son Needs To Know About The World by Frederik Bachman

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

*Full review coming soon.

The Summer Guests by Mary Alice Monroe

⭐️⭐️⭐️

You can see my full review HERE.

The First Mistake by Sandie Jone

⭐️⭐️⭐️

You can see my full review HERE.

April in Review:

April was a pretty great reading month. While I did read some books that were just so-so, I also read so many wonderful ones! Life and Other Conveniences was such a great and enjoyable read and To Have and To Hold will definitely make my top 10 of the year.

Trophy Wife was also one of my book highlights because it was light but also engaging and it had the perfect amount of humor and relatability that didn’t make it fall into the “fluff” category for me. It would make a great beach read!


Did you have any favorites last month?

I so appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts or feedback below! Please email me at genthebookworm@gmail.com to connect further.