October was an excellent month all round, really. It was quieter than recent months in terms of life plans, but I had a really great time just relaxing for most of it. And also getting a lot of reading in! This is my monthly reading wrap up where I talk about life events, books I read in October, and some reading highlights.
What Happened in October
October wasn’t all that exciting because I purposefully kept the majority of it free. I know that November is going to be a hectic month with anniversaries and birthdays, so giving myself a chance to wind down in October was definitely the best choice.
Some exciting things did happen though!
My work book club met up at the pub for the first time in two years and I had a brilliant time. We didn’t talk about a specific book, but we ended up chatting for ages. So long that my car park time ran out and I’m now worrying that they’re going to fine me for overstaying by ten minutes! I’m looking forward to meeting up in person again soon. We’re thinking we should do a Christmas dinner as long as the case numbers don’t explode by then.
I also took part in Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon! I finished four books and I’m SO. PLEASED. with myself. I was going to post a TBR on my blog, which I did have all written up, but I just didn’t get around to formatting or posting it because work kicked my butt that week.
I’ve started doing weekly reading sprints on my Booktube channel and they’ve made Monday nights a lot more exciting! They’re also really helping me to focus on reading, otherwise I would probably just watch a load of TV while Quill is out of the house instead.
Books I Read in October
I somehow read 19 books in October?? I don’t know how I managed it. I think it’s partly because I’m now commuting again for part of the week, which is the perfect chance to listen to audiobooks. I’ve been blasting through those, and it helps that Audible has introduced the Plus programme for UK subscribers. Having some down time and so few life plans really helped as well, and of course I have to give credit to Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon for pushing me to read four books over one weekend.
Here are some of my reading highlights from October! It was hard to choose so few books out of my long list, but these are books that really stood out to me this month for various reasons.
★★★★★
Miracle Creek was a surprise hit for me! I loved the sounds of it, but I didn’t think I was going to give it a full five stars. It’s absolutely captivating and I couldn’t put it down. I’d highly recommend reading it if you like small town drama, mysteries, and some court room suspense.
★★★★
The Girl From the Well was a surprise hit for me. I didn’t get on with The Bone Witch when I first tried to read it, but I picked up TGFTW as a buddy read with Justine and Kayla. It ended up being one of the creepiest YA books I’ve ever read, and I loved it!
★★★★
This was a complete cover “buy” as I saw the book in Waterstones and was hyped when I saw it was available through my library system. I’m really into plane crashes (don’t @ me) as I find them fascinating, and I really enjoyed how fast paced this book was. After reading some reviews from flight attendants, apparently it’s also super accurate too, which I love!
★★★★
I’ve been reading through Tiffany D Jackson’s backlist this year and it’s been a Journey. I’ve got a video going up on my Booktube channel about it soon. I loved White Smoke, which was Jackson’s first take on YA horror (although you could argue that her previous books are kind of horrific too) and she absolutely crushed it. This had me on the edge of my seat and contained some of my favourite creepiest tropes.
★★★★
I knew I would enjoy Felix Ever After but after seeing some reviews say that Felix took a while to warm up to, I was hesitant. I honestly don’t know what those reviewers were talking about though because Felix was kind of a troubled sweetheart? I loved this one, and while I wasn’t a fan of the romance(s) (I knocked a star off for that), I flew through it and really engaged with all the characters.
★★★★
I was supposed to read Black Sun last year for book club but I couldn’t get into it at the time. I gave it another go and this time I really enjoyed it! I love the world building and the politics. It reminded me a little of The Bone Shard Daughter in terms of the vibe it gives off (I’m thinking mostly about the sailing).
Plans Going Forward
Like I said, November is going to be CHAOTIC. We kick off the month with our anniversary. We’ve decided to go ice skating in London, followed by some book shopping (of course), followed by FINALLY going to see Six: the Musical. I cannot express how excited I am to finally go and see it. The day after, we’re going to see the fireworks with a friend. It’ll involve standing in a massive field for a couple of hours but it’ll be great.
Then we have my birthday. I’m not sure what I’m doing for it yet, but one of my friends is coming to visit! I think we’ll end up getting takeaway and chilling. If someone could get me cake, that’d be really good.
After that, we’re going to stay with some friends for the weekend to see their new house!
And finally, the following weekend is Quill’s birthday. Again, I’m not sure what we’re doing for it, but it’ll be nice to get another takeaway and chill. Maybe with more cake?
I’ll update you all next month once we’ve finalised and completed all our plans!
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