April Wrap-Up & May TBR

I remember writing in the last Wrap-Up & TBR -post about the beginning of spring and how it's a beautiful time of the year. Guess what. It started snowing the next day. And that day was the April Fool's day. You got me there, Finnish weather, you got me and everyone else in Finland who thought that we were finally getting rid of the winter.

For the month of April, I haven't been reading that much. I read at the beginning of the month and then nearing the end of the month. Somewhere in the middle, I just didn't have the feeling to pick up a book at all. Instead, I turned to the archnemesis of reading: Netflix. I binge-watched Gilmore Girls and The Crown. It's amazing how addicting it is. You know when you watch a series on Netflix and at the end of the episode, there's the 15-second countdown before the next episode begins automatically. Well, I have my laptop connected to the TV (for the larger screen) and when the countdown begins, and I am lying down on the sofa, it is impossible to get to the laptop to press stop before the next episode begins. I tried many times, and then, I just gave up, submitting to the fate of watching until I almost fell asleep.

But you probably came here for the books, not the tragic story of my Netflix addiction, so here they are: The books I managed to read through in the month of April:

Review: Pen & Xander

 '' ''What you've gotten yourself into...'' she smiles, nostalgic, ''is the most faithful and fucked-up family you will ever meet.'' ''

 ★★★★★

From Goodreads:
Pen Prado has a passion for cooking. Specifically, cooking her father's food in her father's restaurant. It's the heart of their immigrant neighborhood, a place where everyone belongs, and second chances are always on the menu. Except for Pen. Despite the fact that there's something almost magic about her food, her father can't imagine anything worse than her following in his footsteps. And when Pen confesses to keeping a secret from her family, he fires her, ensuring she never will.

Xander Amaro is undocumented but that doesn't stop Ignacio Prado from offering him a job at his restaurant. For Xander, it's a chance to make amends and to sever his toxic relationship with the druglord, El Cantil--a man whose been like a father to him since his own disappeared. Soon after, his mother abandoned him too, leaving behind a void that not even his abuelo can fill. Until he meets Pen.

Both seeking a place where they feel like they truly belong, they end up finding each other, and in the face of tremendous fear and self-doubt, they end up finding themselves.  

This book is about finding where you belong and learning that feeling something, feeling everything is okay.

GIVEAWAY! Author Laekan Zea Kemp

The month of March is finally here and I have many exciting things to share with you guys! One of them happens to be the giveaway by author Laekan Zea Kemp. She contacted me a while ago about her book Pen & Xander which is a tale of finding who you are. Pen loves cooking in her father's restaurant, but her family wants so much more for her. Xander seeks a new beginning after his past with a drug-lord. The book is about finding yourself, food, and second chances. I am super excited to get to read it in a couple weeks!