April 2026 Wrap Up

Let’s get to my April 2026 wrap up. It was a month of great reads even though it felt like The Shadow Rising consumed all of my time. Here’s what I read.

The Hobbit

Synopsis:

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” So, begins one of the most beloved and delightful tales in the English language—Tolkien’s prelude to The Lord of the Rings. Set in the imaginary world of Middle-earth, at once a classic myth and a modern fairy tale, The Hobbit is one of literature’s most enduring and well-loved high fantasy novels.

Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure. They have launched a plot to raid the treasure hoard guarded by Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon. Bilbo reluctantly joins their epic quest, unaware that on his journey to the Lonely Mountain he will encounter both a magic ring and a frightening creature known as Gollum.

My Rating: 5/5

My Full Review: https://wildwoodreads.com/2026/04/15/the-hobbit-review/

The Shadow Rising

Synopsis:

Accompanied by Moiraine Damodred, Rand arrives at the Aiel Waste and is granted permission by the Wise Ones to enter the sacred city of Rhuidean. After passing through a doorframe ter’angreal, Moiraine gains foresight while the Aiel await Rand’s return, either with both arms marked by dragon symbols, validating his identity as He Who Comes With the Dawn, the Chief of Chiefs of all the Aiel—or to never emerge at all.

My Rating: 3/5

My Full Review: https://wildwoodreads.com/2026/04/29/the-shadow-rising-review/

The Spell for Sinners and Saints

Synopsis:

In front of an elegantly shabby townhouse on a Savannah side street sits a hand-painted sign: Miss Edie, Psychic. Ingrid White inherited the house and business from her beloved grandmother, a local celebrity in town. But unless Ingrid can find a way to pay for crushing property taxes and mounting repairs, she’s going to lose them both.    

Ingrid has faith in the homespun witchcraft Edie passed down to her, yet hope and clients are dwindling. . . . Until Sailor Loeffler’s bachelorette party changes everything. Sailor is local royalty—part of the vast “Savannah Sauce” empire, beautiful and wealthy beyond imagining—and Ingrid’s reading is so accurate that she becomes the bride-to-be’s confidante. To keep that access and all the privileges it brings, Ingrid relies more and more on hexes and dark spells—using the baneful magic Edie always warned her against.

As Ingrid works even riskier spells, she is drawn further into the Loefflers’ inner circle and the obstacles in her path melt away. But is it witchcraft or other, more earthbound forces?  Ingrid can feel the lines blurring even as her powers seem to grow, until she must confront the truth about just how far some people, including herself, will go to keep the life they’ve always wanted . . .

My Rating: Coming Soon

My Full Review: Coming Soon

The Third Gilmore Girl

Synopsis:

Kelly Bishop’s long, storied career has been defined by landmark achievements, from winning a Tony Award for her turn in the original Broadway cast of A Chorus Line to her memorable performance as Jennifer Grey’s mother in Dirty Dancing. But it is probably her iconic role as matriarch Emily in the modern classic Gilmore Girls that cemented her legacy.

Now, Bishop reflects on her remarkable life and looks towards the future with The Third Gilmore Girl. She shares some of her greatest stories and the life lessons she’s learned on her journey. From her early transition from dance to drama, to marrying young to a compulsive gambler, to the losses and achievements she experienced—among them marching for women’s rights and losing her second husband to cancer—Bishop offers a rich, genuine celebration of her life.

My Rating: 5/5

My Full Review: I loved every minute of this. It was so, so good. Kelly has had a fabulously interesting life, and it was fun to journey through the memories with her.

Mostly What God Does

Synopsis:

If we could believe this, really believe this, how different would we be? How different would our lives be? How different would our world be?

If you ever struggle with your connection to God (or whether you even feel connected to a faith at all!), you’re not alone. Especially in our modern world, with its relentless, never-ending news cycle, we can all grapple with such questions. Do we do that alone, with despair and resignation? Or do we make sense of it with God, and with hope? In these uncertain times, could believing in the power of divine love make the most sense?

In this collection of essays, Savannah Guthrie shares why she believes it does. Unspooling personal stories from her own joys and sorrows as a daughter, mother, wife, friend, and professional journalist, the award-winning TODAY show coanchor and New York Times bestselling author explores the place of faith in everyday life.

My Rating: 4/5

My Full Review: I loved this as well. It wasn’t quite a memoir more like a collection of devotionals that stemmed from her life experiences. However, it is a tad on the heartbreaking side considering the circumstances around her mother’s disappearance.

That was my April 2026 wrap up. What did you read this month?