Well, if you’re a follower, you may have gleaned from some of my more recent posts that the month ended heartbreakingly with a big loss. Other than that, May was quite uneventful although it seemed to pass in a relative blink. I had a birthday and I treated myself to many things, such as new bags and books. I also went shopping to cheer myself up at the end of the month because I am that retail therapy girl (it partly worked). 🐼 Is it too soon to wish that this year was already over? Or that I could sleep for a million years because I feel completely exhausted and as if I will never stop being tired, lol.
Sorry this recap is a bit of a downer.
All things considered, I’m shocked that May ended up being the month where I read the most so far in 2025. I finished 18 books, and I think several factors played into it. First, I started listening to more audiobooks, allowing me to keep reading while doing other things like working out! Second, I read a lot as a distraction towards the end of this month, cos I really needed it and I couldn’t be more thankful to have books to help me mentally escape reality.
I had two 5-star reads this month, both were graphic novels, but I think my May favourite (that was just short of 5-stars) was 🥇 Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe. 🥇 This was my first non-fiction of the year and an incredible read. It’s heartbreaking, illuminating, sharply written and very readable. I’m keen to read more from this author in the future!
It was also another great month co-hosting the Let’s Talk Bookish weekly meme. You can learn more about it, read all the discussions, and see the upcoming month’s discussion topics HERE.
*COVERS are linked to Goodreads and the TEXT is linked to my review, if available*
*books are arranged by READING ORDER from first to latest*
5 pandas
Blades of Furry, Vol. 1 by Emily Erdos & Deya Muniz, Saint Catherine by Anna Meyer
(ARC) Blades of Furry
(ARC) Saint Catherine
4.5 pandas
(ARC) The Raven and the Dove
(ARC) Sliding Home
4 pandas
(ARC) The Thief of Farrowfell
Masquerade
3 pandas
The Lady Who Knew Too Much by Alyson Chase
less than 3 pandas (*or no rating for erotic romances)
A Lesson in Vengeance by Victoria Lee, Sliding Home by Carly Keene
I completely forgot about my reading challenges but for the most part, I got lucky and had many that fit the prompts. I made the most progress with my Beat the Backlist Bingo but also with generally reading my backlist books. Sadly, I ended up not completing last month’s Year in Aeldia prompt because I didn’t pick up a dystopian and can’t seem to remember the titles of any on my TBR! 😅 We’ll complete that this month after some sleuthing.
✔ Goodreads Reading Challenge: 62/150 books (my challenge on the site is very out of date but I have my Notion tracker that’s updated!)
✔ Beat the Backlist: 📚 9 backlist books // 📱 1 backlist ARCs ⇢ 6 Bingo Spaces
✔ 2025 Buzzword Reading Challenge: April (“animals”) ⇢ Masquerade (Elephants) // May (“to” and “too”) ⇢ The Lady Who Knew Too Much
❌ 2025 Year in Aeldia: May: Dystopia ⇢ MISSED
✔ 2025 Popsugar Reading Challenge: 5 books ⇢ Prompts 24, 28, 37, 38, 40
And that’s it for May! How was your month and what was your favourite book? Did you read what you planned or did you go completely off script (or on mood)? I hope everyone is doing good and taking care. 💜
dinipandareads 
A fellow May baby! Glad you were able to treat yourself. Retail therapy is too real. Sorry that the rest of the month was kind of a downer for you. I hope you get some much needed rest in June.
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Thanks, Alicia! Nice to see you back in the blogosphere 🙂 I hope you had a good birthday month and treated yourself to something good 💜
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I’m sorry that you had a bad month ❤ Hugs for your big loss. I also feel the retail therapy bit. I’ve been doing loads of that.
I’m glad to see you liked The Library of the Unwritten
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Retail therapy is sometimes really the best thing. I hope you’re doing okay, Annemieke! 🫂
I’m glad that I finally read Library of the Unwritten and I’m keen to continue with the series. Have you read it?
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I read the first two books but have yet to finish the series. I might reread them in the future to get to the third.
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Ooh, I hope you enjoy your re-reads and the third book! 🙂
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You can’t rush grief and healing. No apologies necessary. Audiobooks really are a great way to read more. I loved when my job was more mindless and I could work and listen. My numbers were amazing!
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Thanks, Sam! 💜 Well, I think your numbers are still pretty amazing but I totally get what you mean. I miss being able to read at work 🤭
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I am sorry for your loss, but wow, that’s a lot of reading! Sometimes books provide exactly the escape that we need. I hope they can help you heal over the coming months.
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They definitely helped with the escape I very much needed—I love reading and books so much for their ability to do that! 💜 Thanks, Nicole!
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I hope June is better for you Dini and yes I also wish the year was over!
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Thanks, Yolanda! 💜 I feel like we’ll soon be saying “I can’t believe the year is already over!” Lol
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Right?! It’s going by so fast!
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I’m sorry for your loss! I hope this month has better things in store for you 💞
I only managed to complete my Year in Aeldia prompt (which was also to read a dystopian) because I finally read the new Hunger Games book 😄
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Thanks, Caro! I hope that June will be amazing for you as well 💜 Ooh, that’s a good idea! Well, not to read the new Hunger Games book but to re-read the Hunger Games because I got myself the new pretty editions of it 🙂
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[…] Monthly Wrap-Up: May 2025 […]
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hope you had a happy may! I find my reading goes completely off plan every time, but I did find myself starting a couple arcs recently 😄💕
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