Can you believe another month has gone by? I’m already back to talk about what I read in September in another monthly reading recap. This post contains affiliate links.
If you are inspired to read/buy any of the books I share, I have an affiliate account with Bookshop.org (and an Amazon shop page). Bookshop is a great way to get books online while also supporting local bookstores. I HIGHLY encourage you to shop through Bookshop and support Black-owned bookstores if you can. I have made two “shelves” on the site: my 2020 reads and some books that are on my TBR/books I’ve bought recently.
2020 READING GOAL UPDATE.
As I’m writing this, I am now ONE book away from my reading goal of 52 books! This month, work started up again (back to school season!) and I’m pretty proud of the fact that I still was able to read 8 books. It gives me hope going forward that I can keep up my reading pace even with work happening in full force!
44. Anna K by Jenny Lee
2.75/5 stars.
Whew. I struggled to get through this one. I was never actively disliking it, but it felt like a very long journey that was definitely a struggle at times.
I never read Anna Karenina but at 800 pages I’m not sure I want to lol. The ending of this was such a let down, especially with how difficult it was for me to get through the book itself. I guess I had very different expectations for this story & it ended up being nothing more than fine.
Find it on Goodreads. | Buy it here.
45. Redefining Realness by Janet Mock
4/5 stars.
I absolutely loved this book. Janet Mock gave us so many details and stories that she did not owe us about her life. I learned so much and it was an amazing audiobook. Definitely recommend!
Find it on Goodreads. | Buy it here.
46. The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar
2/5 stars.
This was just … not my cup of tea. It ended up being a very very juvenile YA book that I desperately wanted to like.
I lovedddd learning about henna and Nishat’s culture and I loved that the main character was a queer person of color. I also adored Nishat’s interactions with her sister. However, the story itself fell extremely flat. This was NOT enemies to lovers. Nishat and Flavia never truly dislike each other. There were a lot of buzz words & pop culture references thrown around for what felt like the sake of ~relevance~. The dialogue was cringeworthy in many places. A lot of unnecessary details. Really sad but I didn’t love this one & probably would not recommend.
Find it on Goodreads. | Buy it here.
47. A Rogue Of One’s Own by Evie Dunmore
4/5 stars.
Another stellar book from QUEEN Evie Dunmore! Earlier this year, I went into Bringing Down the Duke with very low expectations (I thought I would hate it) but I ended up being obsessed. It was probs my favorite romance I’ve read in 2020! So, needless to say, I went into Evie’s second book with very high hopes (even pre-ordered this book!)
I really loved Lucie as a character in BDtD and was so happy that she got her own book. She deserved someone no less than spectacular and we really get that with Tristan! The story in this one was a little less juicy and I felt like it drug in places, which is why I marked it 4 stars. But I highly recommend and am excited to continue the series!
Find it on Goodreads. | Buy it here.
48. Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier
3.5/5 stars.
Now that it’s ~fall~ I’m excited to be reading more thrillers! In years past, I almost exclusively read thrillers but since 2019 I’ve cooled off a bit. I’m excited to be diving back into the genre with BBBC’s Ghouls’ Night Out thriller challenge group.
First up was Little Secrets. This is my first Jennifer Hillier book. I loved the pacing and was so into the story and characters. I ended up docking stars because there’s an entire subplot that kind of just… disappeared for most of the book? Because of that, it felt like the book didn’t flow well and there were a lot of weird/unnecessary turns.
Loved the twist and the ending. This was definitely more of a lighter thriller in terms of content and scary factor. So if you are wanting to dip your toes into the genre this is a good pick for you!
Find it on Goodreads. | Buy it here.
49. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
4/5 stars.
If you are an avid reader or spend any time at all on Bookstagram, you have probably seen or heard of this series. It is wildly popular and most people are obsessed. My friends and I are buddy reading this series this fall/winter and we finished book 1 this month!
If you couldn’t tell, I’m very much not a Fantasy Person. The only fantasy books I’ve ever read and enjoyed were Harry Potter. And I really enjoyed this. I’m so thankful I’m buddy reading the series because I had many THOUGHTS after finishing book one. When we decided to read this I bought all the books at once and I was nervous that I wouldn’t want to continue after book one. WRONG. I’m very much into this series and will definitely be continuing!
As for the book: I loved the characters and the world building was fun. I thought the middle was kind of slow, but the second half of the book went at a breakneck pace. I sat down to read and easily finished a quarter of the book without even realizing. I had some problems with the writing at times and the sketchy, possessive vibes of the male characters. There was no cliffhanger ending that I was expecting, but you are definitely left with some questions after it ends! Eager to see where this goes next! Probably the best book I read in September.
Find it on Goodreads. | Buy it here.
50. Winter in Paradise by Elin Hilderbrand
4/5 stars.
Yay for more Elin to be read in seasons other than summer! After reading a ton of her books in summer 2020, I went on an eBay ~used book shopping spree~ and was able to pick up book 1 of her Paradise series. Since the third and final book in the series is coming out in October, I decided now was a great time to get started on the series in preparation!
This was definitely more thriller-y than her previous books I’ve read. It still has the quintessential “Elin factor” but I loved the vibe of this and the characters. You truly don’t know where things are going. After finishing book 1 I had a lot of questions, so I immediately dove into book 2! And I think that’s when you know a series is going to be good. Stay tuned.
Find it on Goodreads. | Buy it here.
51. Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker
3.5/5 stars.
When I say I didn’t know where this book was going… I mean I truly had no freaking clue what was true and what was false in this story. SO many questions came up as I read. I honestly had many questions when the book concluded. And even more questions in the following 24 hours after I finished. What an absolutely wild ride this book was!
Emma in the Night definitely frustrated some people and was a little polarizing when it came to rating. But honestly, to me, that is a tell-tale sign of a good thriller.
Find it on Goodreads. | Buy it here.
BOTM PICK(S).
I always get a ton of questions about which book I picked for my BOTM box so I decided to add it into my monthly reading round-ups! For October, I picked: Ties That Tether with Home Before Dark and Invisible Girl as add-ons.
BOOKS I BOUGHT IN SEPTEMBER.
A Rogue of One’s Own, What Happens in Paradise, Majesty, The Lost Story of Mina Lee (BOTM), Full Disclosure (BOTM), Emma in the Night (BOTM), The Simple Wild, The Roommate, Good Morning Destroyer of Men’s Souls
CURRENTLY READING.
I’m finishing up Hood Feminism on audiobook because my library hold ran out! I’m also reading What Happens in Paradise (ahead of the third book in the series releasing Tuesday) and Felix Ever After for BBBC Haus of Bad Bitches subgroup coming up this week!
