Book of the Month is a subscription box in which members choose up to 5 hardcover books to receive each month.
You can sign up here to get your first book for $5.
This month, Book of the Month (BOTM) chose 6 main selections and 9 add-ons.
Main Picks | Add-Ons | Predictions | My Choices
Main Picks
Blood Bond
Ellis Hunter
An epic romantasy with dragons, witches, and a duel to the death. To save their kingdoms, two heroes will risk it all.
Fantasy | Debut | Early Release
Mad Mabel
Sally Hepworth
Over the river and through the woods, to grandmother’s house we go. Just don’t ask about the murder allegations.
Mystery | Repeat Author | Early Release
Annie Knows Everything
Rachel Wood
In this delightfully charming workplace rom-com, a charismatic go-getter has much to learn about falling in love.
Romance | Debut
Porcupines
Fran Fabriczki
Fresh, frank, and funny, this debut is a slice-of-life exploration of family, faith, and following your dreams.
Literary Fiction | Debut
Yesteryear
Caro Claire Burke
A picture-perfect “tradwife” wakes up to a reality that looks nothing like her curated feed. Home sweet homestead?
Contemporary Fiction | Debut
Molka
Monika Kim
This unnerving social horror pushes the dangerous world of spycams to its limit. Smile, you’re on (hidden) camera.
Horror | Early Release
Add Ons
This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me
Ilona Andrews
She knows every twist of this world. Now she’s trapped inside it. Can her knowledge of series lore help save the day?
Fantasy
Famesick
Lena Dunham
Dunham spares no detail in this memoir that delves behind the scenes of the hit TV series that changed her life.m.
Memoir
The Ending Writes Itself
Evelyn Clarke
Ghostwriting turns deadly when authors compete to finish a bestselling series. Writer’s block, meet chopping block.
Mystery | Debut
Into the Blue
Emma Brodie
Improv, Shakespeare, and sci-fi blend in this sweeping romance about two actors who can’t stop falling in love.
Contemporary Fiction
A Good Person
Kirsten King
Exes and hexes go off the rails in this shocking, darkly funny novel about how to get over a messy breakup.
Literary Fiction | Debut
Nothing Tastes As Good
Luke Dumas
A miracle weight-loss cure transforms a lonely man as missing time, monstrous cravings, and bodies pile up.
Thriller
Nothing Tastes As Good
Xochitl Gonzalez
Welcome to 2000s Brooklyn: dreams are big, apartments are small, and one chic neighbor can show you a whole new world.
Contemporary Fiction | Repeat Author | Early Release
The Book Witch
Meg Shaffer
When her grandfather goes missing, a witch with the power to jump into stories teams up with a dashing fictional duke.
Fantasy | Repeat Author
What Am I, A Deer?
Polly Barton
This book made us want to fall in love with a stranger, go to karaoke and scream-sing Purple Rain, or throw ourselves out of a window. The performance of being a person is humiliating, but nonchalance is the thief of joy—quite a dilemma. Read if you seek stream-of-consciousness prose about a maladaptive daydreamer with a big vocab and a bad crush.
The Offset
Predictions & Thoughts
There are six main and eight add-on Book of the Month (BOTM) selections for April, including six debuts and three books by repeat authors. Among the picks are a few March releases – This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me and Nothing Tastes as Good. There was also a new book for The Offset collection – What Am I, A Deer?.
This month, I predicted all of the main selections as well as all of the add-ons, except for The Offset pick, between this month’s and last month’s predictions. I am unsure how many times I have ever predicted all the selections or all of the add-ons before. Personally, I think it is extremely hard to predict one of the special collection selections.
Let’s talk about what books were not among the picks. Personally, I was really hoping for The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances by Glenn Dixon with its Brave Little Toaster vibes. I am quite surprised that Jessica George’s sophomore novel was not a pick. Because it is an Aardvark Book Club pick, I am wondering if they snagged it first. I am not surprised that We Burned So Bright is not among the picks since it is a very late April release. Otherwise, I do not think there are many books left out. Fifteen books is the most I can recall dropping in one month.
My Choices
I have an advanced reader’s copy of This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me and Yesteryear; so I do not plan on purchasing a copy of either unless I love them. I should also have a copy of Into the Blue and The Book Witch on the way from the publisher. So that narrows down the books for me to choose quite a bit.
Because I am reading a lot of romantic fantasy and the like lately, I am going to add Blood Bound to my box even though I usually avoid the ones with dragons. I am super drawn in by the cover of Annie Knows Everything but am going to hold off until I see reviews by people I trust. I debated whether to get Porcupines because the short synopsis includes faith, which I have little interest in; however, I think I am going to take a chance on it and hope it is as funny as described. I have not loved Sally Hepworth’s recent books, so I am also going to pass on it. As I mentioned in past months, I have not been reading much horror and have enough of a horror backlist when I feel like reading some.
In terms of add-ons, I am going to opt to be on the more hesitant side. I am behind on reading the BOTM picks I already have from this year. Until I have dived into those I have bought this year, I am plan on skipping add-ons unless I am highly anticipating a book. I still have not read Xochitl Gonzalez’s debut novel; so, I have passed on her subsequent books until I read it. In addition, I have been avoiding books BOTM labels mysteries as I really prefer faster paced books and will be skipping The Ending Writes Itself. I am curious about Nothing Tastes As Good and may add to a future box. The late month add-on of Famesick is an absolute pass for me. I am not surprised that BOTM included a celebrity memoir, but I am one of those Lena Dunham haters and am a bit disgusted that they are carrying her book when she admitted to sexually assaulting her sister in her previous memoir.
