October 2023 Wrap-Up

Happy November and NaNoWriMo!

Photo creds to my spooky bff.

How was everyone’s Halloween? If you dressed up, let me know what your costume was in the comments! I picked my costume super last minute, and ended up being a panda. My friend and I also did our ghost photoshoot again, which was so much fun! I’ll post about that photoshoot sometime this month, so keep an eye out. In terms of reading, I got a TON more reading done this month. I ended up reading 11 books and 1 audiobook. Reading a bunch of manga definitely helped 😅

In terms of professional development, I attended the ACES VCON 2023 conference, and an editing Unconference. I’m currently catching up on the sessions I missed, but I learned so much and met many fellow editors. These were both such great experiences! I also have one more editing slot available in November, so if you’ve got a full manuscript ready for editing, or if you’re unsure what kind of edit it needs, check out my Editing Services page and contact me 😄

My Library

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

Review:

I wasn’t sure if I’d enjoy this book because it’s not something I would’ve chosen for myself, but again, this was a great recommendation by my friend 😅It had a very captivating beginning—after the introduction anyway. There were so many different POVs that I thought I would get confused or overwhelmed, but every character was very well-established so I have no problem remembering who’s who. Malcolm reminded me of Jiminy Cricket with how he explained the moral dilemmas of science and evolution and how science would change the planet. Lex was my least fav character because she was such an annoying child. I commend Grant for his patience, because I probably would’ve thrown that kid to the T-Rex a long time ago 😂 The amount of gore was perfect. It wasn’t overdone for shock value, which was nice. I thought Crichton did a great job with transitioning from one POV to the next. I rekindled my love for dinosaurs with this book and even bought a dinosaur blanket 😂 I highly recommend this if you like sci-fi and dinosaurs! Now I’m off to watch the movie and compare it to the book!

5/5⭐

The Tea Dragon Society Books 1-3 by Kay O’Neill

Review:

I absolutely loved this series! It was just so wholesome and heartwarming, plus the artwork was so cozy and whimsical! I loved the sign language included in the second book, and I thought it was inspiring how the entire village learned the language because one member was deaf. I like how different genders and sexualities were handled in this story, because the characters were all diverse and their gender and sexuality was never a main plot point in the story. Eric and Hesekial were also so precious. I enjoyed all the little life lessons woven into the plot as well. This series is perfect if you just want a quick, cozy read. It’s like a hug and a cup of tea in a book.

5/5⭐

The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz

Review:

Oh my effin goodness I LOVED this graphic novel. It was absolutely adorable and heartwarming and cheesy! I loved all the cheese references in the story. I adored all the characters and they had such a great friendship. Brie’s friends were so supportive of her, but weren’t afraid to give her a reality check when she needed it. All the face expressions were fantastic and so relatable. The grilled cheese bit was romantic AF. The fashion was on point. This story was just absolute fire. I don’t reread books, but if I did, this would be one I’d pick up multiple times for the rest of my life.

5/5⭐

Netgalley eARCs

Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister Vol. 1 by Marcey Naito

Review:

I picked this up because of the shrine setting and the cover looked fun. However, there was just a ton of fan service and boobies in the manga. The male MC kept getting caught in compromising positions, which is a very common trope, but I felt like it was a bit overused here. It’s like every few pages he ran into boobs. He also has to pick a sister to marry, and they are all within his age range, although marrying the youngest sister would be a sketchy match since she’s only 14. The second half of the volume where he goes through the marriage interviews with each sister was nice in the sense that we got to see more of each girl’s personality. I wasn’t planning to continue the series, but the dream plot twist at the end made me want to find out what happens next. All in all, this was an ok manga.

3/5⭐

Ogami-san Can’t Keep It In Vol. 1 by Yu Yoshidamaru

Review:

As someone who reads dark romance, I can have a bit of a dirty mind, so I chose this manga because the FMC, Ogami, also has a dirty mind. This manga was surprisingly relatable and highly entertaining. Ogami’s fantasies were hilarious and again, relatable. The characters were all entertaining to read about and I loved how blunt Yaginuma was. The part where Nezu and Ogami were ranting about body hair was also relatable 😂 The one thing I thought was a bit unnatural was how quickly the rest of the class befriended Ogami and her friend group of loners. They all start the manga being alone, but once they befriend each other, suddenly the entire class is talking to them and befriending them. That seemed to be a bit too quick of a change, but aside from that I’ll definitely continue with this series. It’s surprisingly wholesome and good for a laugh.

4.5/5⭐

The Summer Hikaru Died Vol. 1 by Mokumokuren

Review:

For some reason, I forgot this was a creepy manga when I read it, so the possessed plot twist threw me for a loop. The manga was a bit creepy, which was nice cause I love horror. The story was a bit slow, in my opinion, but I want to continue reading it just to find out what happened to the OG Hikaru in the forest. My main problem with this manga were the speech bubbles. They were drawn with the tiniest tails pointing to the speaker, so it was hard to tell who was speaking at times. There were also a few blank bubbles and text messages, so I wasn’t sure if that was just an unfinished ARC thing, or if that was intentional, but whatever the reason, it made me more confused with what I was missing. I would recommend the story if you like small-town possession horror where there are demons in the woods.

3/5⭐

The Moon on a Rainy Night Vol. 1 by Kuzushiro

Review:

There’s not a lot of deaf rep in books and manga, so I wanted to check this out. It was a cute story, but the friendship between Kanon and Saki seemed a bit forced? It was heartwarming that Saki wanted to learn as much about deaf culture as possible so she could befriend Kanon, but the characters just fell a little flat for me. I really appreciate the research the author put into the story though. Many of the situations in the book were relatable as I’ve experienced some of them with my boyfriend. I’m curious to see what happens next in the story, but since I felt a bit “meh” after reading this, I don’t think I’ll be picking up the next volume soon.

3/5⭐

The Little Red Wolf by Amélie Fléchais

Review:

I really enjoyed this picture book! I love the story of Red Riding Hood, and I was excited to read this twisted retelling of it. In this story, the wolf is the hooded one, and the girl is the monster. There is a twist at the end that just hits you emotionally, and it was lowkey heartbreaking. The artwork was stunning and I loved the dark vibe. The humans looked terrifying, and there was one full-page close-up of the little girl that scared the crap out of me. I liked the abrupt ending though. Overall, this is such a great retelling with beautiful art, but it may be a tad scary for young readers, so proceed with caution lol.

5/5⭐

Other (e)ARCs

From HCC Frenzy/HCC

Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa

Review:

This was honestly just such a relaxing read. It’s very slow-paced and everything that happens is just so subtle. This book does cover some darker topics, but they are discussed in such a relaxing way, if that makes any sense. I enjoyed the story and how things ended up for Takako. I loved the part where she bonds with her uncle over books they’ve read. This book describes the setting so well too. I really want to visit that coffee shop because it sounds so cozy. This book just gives me relaxing Ghibli vibes.

4/5⭐

Audiobooks

The Never King by Nikki St. Crowe

Review:

I never realized how short this book was, so when my friend recommended the audiobook, I couldn’t resist. I thought it started out a little boring, but Vane and the other boys sound hot AF, but they are such buttheads to Cherry. Vane is like a walking red flag 😅 The SPICE though. OMG. The scene with Bash, Winnie, and Pan was just whoo! Such spice. I love the reverse harem trope in this book so much and can’t wait to see how it develops in the sequels. The narrator for Winnie’s character had such a nice voice for the male characters too. i think the only thing I didn’t really like was how they have the “Winnie’s different than other girls” trope, but other than that, I loved this story! I also love Peter Pan retellings, so I’m a bit biased 😂

3.5/5⭐

And that’s a wrap! I really hope I keep up my reading pace because I have so many books I want to read before the Iron Flame release. I also still need to read Fourth Wing, so wish me luck! Let me know what fun books you read in October and if you have any highly anticipated reads. If you’re participating in NaNoWriMo, I wish you lots of luck, minimal writer’s block, and endless story ideas!

Happy reading and writing 😁