September Wrap-Up
IT’S OFFICIALLY SPOOKY SEASON, MY DUDES 🎃
What’s on your TBR for this month? I’m going to try to dedicate more time to reading my backed-up TBR, along with trying to fit loads of spooky reads in. My reading in September slacked off a ton since I was super busy with editing, attending the ACES editing conference, and hanging out with family and friends. I only finished 4 books this month and 3 of them were audiobooks 😅
Not related to reading, but I ended up doing another ghost photoshoot last weekend when I went to High River with my friend, my fiancé, and my puppy for the hot air balloon festival! It was super fun and you can expect another “Haunting of High River” post sometime during mid-October. I’m posting this so y’all can hold me accountable LOL. You can also get an idea of what this post will be like here.
I’m also currently booking edits into November, so if you have any manuscripts that you’re looking to have edited, email me and I’d be happy to see if I’d be a good fit for your manuscript. Extra points if it’s a spooky story!
Now here’s my wrap-up! It’s a super short post this time, but I hope you’ll find some book recs to check out 😁
My Library
I’m currently reading Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo. Summer Sons was recommended to me by my friend who absolutely LOVED the book. His enthusiasm was infectious and the book is a spooky read, so I decided to buy a copy from Margin’s Bookstore in High River (if you ever visit, definitely check them out). I’m loving it so far, although I’ve never seen a book use so many semicolons before. I look forward to seeing this story unfold, especially with the intense plot twists that happen later in the story.
Netgalley eARCs
1-2-3-4 I Declare a Thumb War by Lisi Harrison and Daniel Kraus
Review:
I love spooky books and this MG book was hella spooky with a bit of gore. The thumb story totally creeped me out. I thought the characters were all very interesting with their personal struggles of growing up and navigating family and relationships, and I'm curious to see how Zuzu deals with both friend groups later in the series. I liked the ending with Whisper's family situation and how that got resolved as well. I can't wait to see what other adventures the Graveyard Girls get up to! Their club totally sounds like something I would've joined when I was younger.
4/5⭐
Other (e)ARCs
I’m also currently reading Road of the Lost by Nafiza Azad (thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for the eARC). I am really enjoying it so far as well, especially Nafiza’s writing style and world building. I’m really curious with how this story will end, so I can’t wait to keep reading!
Audiobooks
The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones
Review:
I've never been a fan of zombie-type books, but I'm now the number one fan of bone houses. This book is spectacular and spooky and I can't recommend it enough.. I LOVE THIS BOOK. The bone goat was the star of the story. I don’t think I’ve ever been so attached to an animal in a story as I’ve been to this goat. I love how Ellis and Ryn talk about Ellis’s shoulder pain and how he hates when people pity him or think he’s stronger because he has to live with the pain every day. I think Emily handled the discussion of his pain really well. You really get attached to all the characters and I loved Ryn and her siblings’s bond. Cerridwyn was so sweet and I loved her personality. The part with Ryn’s father was so emotional. I really love the whole vibe of this book and all the folklore that’s woven throughout the story. I also lowkey want to name my future child, Aderyn.
6/5⭐
The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones
Review:
This was a pretty great book as well! I didn’t love it as much as The Bone Houses, but it is definitely still one of my favs. I loved the prologue and it really hyped me up for the story, but it took me a while to get drawn into the book past Chapter 1. My curiosity was peaked when I realized this was a heist novel and then I was really drawn in when Mer and Fane go to the periwinkle house. I liked the part where the heist team was introduced because that’s one of my fav parts in heist movies as well. The side characters were a bit “meh” except for Trefor and Ivana (not sure if I’m spelling her name correctly since this is an audiobook lol). I was super invested in Ivana’s past with Mer and it was one of my fav arcs of the story. The real drama of the story happens near the end where there’s a huge plot twist that I wasn’t expecting and I couldn’t stop listening. There was also another plot twist that I wasn’t expecting, so the ending was just one wild ride. I thought the ending was very dramatic and powerful, especially with Mer’s big scene. I also really loved how this story connects to The Bone Houses. It was so neat how this story tied into that one and now I’m wishing for more stories in that world. I also really love how Emily tells stories in the beginning and end. Overall, a pretty good book!
4/5⭐
Gravebooks by J.A. White
Review:
First things first, I have to say, the narration was spot-on with all the accents! I was also so happy that there was a sequel to Nightbooks 😍 This book was just as spooky as before, and all the short stories were so great! I liked how Yasmin's recovery from her traumatic experience in Natacha's apartment was handled too. Ms. Goffel was one of my fav characters in this book and she had such a great personality. There were so many plot twists in this book so I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. I thought the idea of Alex's story graveyard was so unique. Overall, this was another amazing book by J.A. White, and I really hope he releases more MG horror in the future 😱
5/5⭐
That’s a wrap! I had a great month with audiobooks, but I’ll be trying to get to more physical books this month. Do you have any books from here that you’ll add to your TBR? Also, don’t forget to stay tuned for “The Haunting of High River Part: 2” 👻 And if you’ve got a manuscript, check out my editing services for more details and hit me up with your manuscript details 😄
Happy reading, my ghouls!
