Month in Review: September 2024

September was apparently a bit of a lackluster blogging month for me. It turns out I only posted three reviews when I had quite a few more planned, so I apologize for that. I've already got a few drafts scheduled to be posted for October reviews, so hopefully we are already going to be doing a bit better this month, haha. 

I read some incredible books this month and some pretty lackluster books, so I had a good bit of variety in my reading last month, haha. The two standouts were Navola and Spireheart, the start of a new series and the final book in a series, respectively Navola is a stunning new fantasy that grabbed me immediately and kept me captivated until the very end–and I cannot wait for more. Spireheart was very bittersweet as I'm sorry to say goodbye to this world and characters, but it was an incredible final installment in an exceptional series. 

This month is also a bit busy, as I have a training this week that will take up a majority of my time during the week/weekend, but I'm trying to have posts scheduled and will do my best to fit in some reading time when possible! The worst part of being busy is when you don't have time to read 😭.  

How was your September?  Let me know how your month was below and what you've been reading!

   

# books read: 11

Navola by Paolo Bacigalupi ★★★★★
Source: Publisher | Format: Physical ARC

Thoughts: This was incredible! It was one of my best reads of the month and became a new favorite fantasy book. A link to my review is below!

Spireheart (Jekua #6) by Travis M. Riddle ★★★★★

Source: Author Request | Format: Ebook

Thoughts: This was one of the other best books I read in Septemeber! This was the final book in the series and it was fantastic. A link to my review for it can also be found below. 

Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe ★★★★
Source: Library | Format: Audiobook

Thoughts: I've been meaning to read this for so long, and I'm glad I finally did. This was incredibly informative and really showcases the opioid problems in America, as well as some of the crazy issues we have with healthcare. A worthwhile read I'd definitely recommend.

The City in Glass by Nghi Vo ★★★.5
Source: Publisher | Format: Hardcover

Thoughts: This was a really beautifully written book, though I didn't really connect with it as much as I'd hoped. My review will be up soon.

Guillotine by Delilah S. Dawson ★★★
Source: Library | Format: Hardcover

Thoughts: This was a perfectly great horror with big 'eat the rich' vibes, but unfortunately I felt like it was lacking some substance. It felt like it existed just to exist, but didn't really have much more purpose behind it. I'd still recommend it, but largely for entertainment. 

The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook (Dungeon Crawler Carl #3) by Matt Dinniman ★★★★
Source: Audible | Format: Audiobook

Thoughts: I've been having so much fun with this series, and I still wholeheartedly recommend the audiobooks. 

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King ★★★★
Source: Owned | Format: Paperback

Thoughts: People are right, this really is a great book for writers! I'm really glad I finally got around to it. 

A Rose by Any Other Name by Mary McMyne ★★★★
Source: Publisher | Format: Paperback

Thoughts: This was a really entertaining historical fantasy and I had a great time in this setting and with these characters.  I had a few issues with it, but overall it was a solid read. 

Sleep Tight by J.H. Markert ★★★
Source: Library | Format: Audiobook

Thoughts: This started out really strong, but sputtered out a bit as the story progressed. The cover doesn't really fit the story (in a disappointing way), and it just became too much of a detective/murder mystery for what I was expecting. I'm sure many will love this one, though!

House of Thorns by Isabel Strychacz ★★★
Source: Library | Format: Audiobook

Thoughts: House of Thorns was a solid ghost story with a bit of a haunted house. It was a bit slower than I expected and I had hoped for more from it, but still a very thoughtful and compelling story. 

The Scarlet Throne (False Goddess #1) by Amy Leow ★★★
Source: Publisher | Format: Physical ARC

Thoughts: This also had a really strong start, but seemed to fizzle a bit as things went along. It felt like a fairly fresh story at first, but then things started to feel a bit more familiar. An interesting fantasy with a compelling premise, but it didn't overly stand out to me. 

DNF/To-Be-Finished:

None!

 

Ruin Road by Lamar Giles
Navola by Paolo Bacigalupi

Spireheart (Jekua #6) by Travis M. Riddle

 Posts:

Month  in Review: August 2024
Blog Tour: In the Garden of Monsters by Crystal King + Excerpt
Blog Tour: The Midnight Club by Margot Harrison + Excerpt

Blog Memes:

Can't-Wait Wednesday:
9/11: The Black Hunger by Nicholas Pullen, Polostan by Neal Stephenson, & Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy
9/18: The Fury of the Gods by John Gwynne, Don't Let the Forest In by CG Drews, & The City in Glass by Nghi Vo
9/25: The Great When by Alan Moore, The Wild Huntress by Emily Lloyd-Jones, & The Treasure Hunters Club by Tom Ryan

The Friday Face-Off:
Current Read #31

Can't-Wait Wednesday: Dearest by Jacquie Walters & Entitlement by Rumaan Alam

   

Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released! This meme is based off of Jill @ Breaking the Spine's Waiting on Wednesday meme.

Dearest by Jacquie Walters
Publication: September 17th, 2024
Mulholland Books
Hardcover. 304 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:
"A new mom in need of help opens her door to her long-estranged mother—only to invite something much darker inside—in this "fast-paced and frightening debut" (Rachel Harrison) about the long shadows cast by family secrets, perfect for readers of Grady Hendrix or Ashley Audrain.

Flora is a new mom enamored of her baby girl, Iris, even if she arrived a few weeks early. With her husband still deployed, Flora navigates the newborn stage alone. But as the sleepless nights pass in the loneliness of their half-empty home, the edges of her reality begin to blur.

Just as Flora becomes convinced she is losing her mind, a surprising guest shows up: Flora’s own mother, to whom she hasn’t spoken in years. Can they mend their fraught relationship? Or is there more Flora’s mother isn’t telling her about the events that led to their estrangement?

As stranger and scarier events unfold, Flora begins to suspect the house is not as empty as she once thought. She must determine: is her hold on reality slipping dangerously away? Or is she, in fact, the only thing standing between a terrifying visitor and her baby?"

A lot of mother-related themes going on lately, but I'm really curious about this one!

Entitlement by Rumaan Alam
Publication: September 17th, 2024
Riverhead Books
Hardcover. 288 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:
"A novel of money and morality from the New York Times bestselling author of Leave the World Behind

Brooke wants. She isn’t in need, but there are things she wants. A sense of purpose, for instance. She wants to make a difference in the world, to impress her mother along the way, to spend time with friends and secure her independence. Her job assisting an octogenarian billionaire in his quest to give away a vast fortune could help her achieve many of these goals. It may inspire new desires as proximity to wealth turns out to be nothing less than transformative. What is money, really, but a kind of belief?

Taut, unsettling, and alive to the seductive distortions of money, Entitlement is a riveting tale for our new gilded age, a story that confidently considers questions about need and worth, race and privilege, philanthropy and generosity, passion and obsession. It is a provocative, propulsive novel about the American imagination."

Leave the World Behind was very hit or miss for a lot of readers, but it's one I ended up really liking, so I'm very excited to try out his latest release!

Can't-Wait Wednesday: The Naming Song by Jedediah Berry, The Empusium by Olga Tokarczuk, & We Kept Her in the Cellar by W.R. Gorman

 
Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released! This meme is based off of Jill @ Breaking the Spine's Waiting on Wednesday meme.

The Naming Song by Jedediah Berry
Publication: September 24th, 2024
Tor Books
Hardcover. 384 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:
"There's nothing more dangerous than an unnamed thing

When the words went away, the world changed.

All meaning was lost, and every border fell. Monsters slipped from dreams to haunt the waking while ghosts wandered the land in futile reveries. Only with the rise of the committees of the named--Maps, Ghosts, Dreams, and Names--could the people stand against the terrors of the nameless wilds. They built borders around their world and within their minds, shackled ghosts and hunted monsters, and went to war against the unknown.

For one unnamed courier of the Names Committee, the task of delivering new words preserves her place in a world that fears her. But after a series of monstrous attacks on the named, she is forced to flee her committee and seek her long-lost sister. Accompanied by a patchwork ghost, a fretful monster, and a nameless animal who prowls the shadows, her search for the truth of her past opens the door to a revolutionary future--for the words she carries will reshape the world.

The Naming Song is a book of deep secrets and marvelous discoveries, strange adventures and dangerous truths. It's the story of a world locked in a battle over meaning. Most of all, it's the perfect fantasy for anyone who's ever dreamed of a stranger, freer, more magical world."

This sounds incredibly imaginative and has some fairly ominous undertones that I'm totally here for. This is a fantasy that I cannot wait to get my hands on–and I'm really loving the cover for this one, too!

The Empusium: A Health Resort Horror Story by Olga Tokarczuk, trans. Antonia Lloyd-Jones
Publication: September 24th, 2024
Riverhead Books
Hardcover. 320 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:
"The Nobelist's latest masterwork, set in a sanitarium on the eve of World War I, probes the horrors that lie beneath our most hallowed ideas.

In September 1913, Mieczysław, a student suffering from tuberculosis, arrives at Wilhelm Opitz’s Guesthouse for Gentlemen, a health resort in  what is now western Poland. Every day, its residents gather in the dining room to imbibe the hallucinogenic local liqueur, to obsess over money and status, and to discuss the great issues of the Will there be war? Monarchy or democracy? Do devils exist? Are women inherently inferior?

Meanwhile, disturbing things are beginning to happen in the guesthouse and its surroundings. As stories of shocking events in the surrounding highlands reach the men, a sense of dread builds. Someone--or something--seems to be watching them and attempting to infiltrate their world. Little does Mieczysław realize, as he attempts to unravel both the truths within himself and the mystery of the sinister forces beyond, that they have already chosen their next target.

A century after the publication of The Magic Mountain, Tokarczuk revisits Thomas Mann territory and lays claim to it, blending horror story, comedy, folklore, and feminist parable with brilliant storytelling."

I've been meaning to read some of Olga Tokarczuk's work for years, and I'm really intrigued by the premise of this one. Really looking forward to this one!

We Kept Her in the Cellar by W.R. Gorman
Publication: Septemer 24th, 2024
Crooked Lane Books
Hardcover. 304 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:
"There are always two sides to a story. This dark and twisted reimagining of Cinderella, told from her stepsister's POV, is perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher and Naomi Novik.

Eunice lives her life by three simple rules: One, always refer to Cinderella as family. Two, never let Cinderella gain access to rats or mice. Three, never look upon Cinderella between the hours of twelve and three a.m.

Cinderella has dark and terrifying powers. As her stepsister, Eunice is expected to care for her and keep the family’s secret. For years, Eunice has faithfully done so. Her childhood flew by in a blur of nightmares, tears, and near-misses with the monster living in the cellar. But when she befriends the handsome Prince Credence and secures an invitation to the ball, Eunice is determined to break free.

When her younger sister, Hortense, steps up to care for Cinderella, Eunice grabs her chance to dance the night away—until Cinderella escapes. With her eldritch powers, Cinderella attends the ball and sweeps Prince Credence off his feet, leaving behind a trail of carnage and destruction as well as a single green glass slipper.

With Cinderella unleashed, Eunice must determine how much of herself she is willing to sacrifice in order to stop Cinderella. Unsettling and macabre at every turn, this page-turning horror will bewitch horror fans and leave its readers anxiously checking the locks on their cellar doors."

I am always up for a new fairytale retelling–especially when it's horror! This sounds like it'll be really creative and I'm eager to see what the author does with this idea.