Five of my 5 Star Reads in May!

May was not my greatest reading month, but it could have been worse. I was in the thick of it with five kids, just trying to survive that newborn stage but also starting to try to actually do other things as well. It was really rough because Leah would not let me set her down during the day for naps much. We ended up taking a "summer break" from school a little early even to try to help. But, when I wasn't on my phone while nap trapped, I did get time to read while snuggling my baby.

I read 19 books and 5,328 pages in May, for an average of 280 pages per book. 15 books were by female authors and 4 were by male authors. I read 2 physical books, 10 ebooks, and 7 audiobooks. I read 5 middle grade, 4 YA, and 10 adult books. I borrowed 9 of the books I read and owned 10 of them. I read aloud 4 books with my kids and read 4 new releases. 4 books were rereads and 15 were new reads. I read 3 books in a series, finishing 1 and starting 0. I had 10 five star reads, 4 four star reads, 5 three star reads, and 0 two or one star reads.

The Other World by Abbie Emmons

This YA contemporary is one I've had on my TBR for quite awhile now and I loved it! Abbie Emmons has a YouTube channel talking about writing and I have always enjoyed watching her videos and learning from her. It was fun to finally read one of her books and to enjoy it so much. The Other World has Little Mermaid retelling vibes, a well-done love triangle, and some captivating character arcs. I am looking forward to trying Abbie Emmons' other books.

London Calling by James Ponti

London Calling is the sixth book in the City Spies series. My kids love the series (we listened to it together) but I have to admit I was starting to get a little tired of it and wasn't as excited to have a new book come out. It surprised me, though, how much I enjoyed it! I really loved seeing more of Mother's kids and the entire plotline around them, and the plotline around the super computer. This book made me excited that there will be a seventh!

The Survivors by Jane Harper

Despite being third here, The Survivors may have been my favorite book this month. Like Jane Harper's other books, it is a slowburn, character-driven thriller. They never seem like my kind of books before I read them, but I've loved every single thing she's written. This one follows a small family of three as the murder of a nonlocal girl mixes with accidental deaths of the past. I loved the characters and the journey they went on. I am really excited for her next book!

Next Level Plot by KM Weiland

Next Level Plot Structure was my nonfiction read of the month and it was very well done. I read her first plot structure book (Creating Character Arcs) years ago and got a lot of out of it. I wish I had done a refresher of that book before reading this one, as this uses a lot of information from the original book to go deeper. Sometime in the future, I'd like to revisit them in succession.

By the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura Ingalls Wilder

By the Shores of Silver Lake was technically a reread for me (I am rereading all the books this year using this reading chart), but the last time I read it was when I was a little girl and I have very few memories of it (most of my Little House memories come from the show).

Those were the books I loved most in May! What books have you been reading and loving lately? What five star reads did you have in May? I'd love to hear about your recent reads and chat about books!