September was a fairly good reading month for me having read nine books. My physical To Be Read pile is pretty big and is always changing but I have started to work my way through the eBooks that I have as well.
Books:
Final Girls by Mira Grant is a horror novella about a therapy treatment where dreams are created and shared to deal with past trauma. When the technology get hijacked while a reported and the creator of the technology they must try to survive together. I love Mira Grant’s work and this was no exception. Though I do wish this was a longer novel what we are given is just the right amount and a great horror story.
The Last Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff is a short story set in the Lotus Wars series. This short story is a prequel to the rest of the series and gives some of the back story to the world that is introduced in the first novel. While I liked this story I would have enjoyed it more if I had read it around the same time as the other books in the series. There has just been too much time between each book for me to really connect to the series or story at the moment.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid is an adult historical fiction novel following the life of Hollywood star Evelyn Hugo and her relationships with her seven husbands. I really liked this book as Evelyn changed as a person and found her own way through the world. The twist near the end surprised me but I loved the characters and it speaks to the fact that you should live your life the way you want to as you never know what could happen.
The Hallow Places by T. Kingfisher is a horror novel about a young woman who finds a path to a world full of willow trees that might connect to other worlds from a hole in the wall of her grandfathers museum. However, there is something in the trees of this world that will find and hurt you it you think about them. Very creepy and unsettling but perfect for the Halloween season. I have a full review for this book as well.
Five Nights at Freddy’s Fazbear Frights vols. 3, 4, and 5 by Scott Cawthon are the next three volumes in the FNAF’s short story collections. Several years ago I got pulled into the lore of the video games and then the books so while they are not the best I still read them when new books come out. Each volume contains three short stories that connect different characters to the animatronics and other creations of Fazebear Entertainment. Great for those already interested in the series thought some stories are much more gruesome and confusing than others they are all creepy horror stories aimed at young adults.
Praying for Rain by Jay Kristoff is the last short story connected to the Louts Wars series that I needed to read. Very short story focusing on a Miho, a girl living in Kigen, and the boy she starts to fall in love with. However, when he finds out her secret her life is put in danger. This story adds a little more to the world and the people that are affected by the war. But once again if I had read this when I read the rest of the series I would have liked it more.
Labyrinth Coronation vol.1 is a graphic novel that tells the story about how Jareth become the Goblin King that we see in the movie. The story parallels Sarah’s journey in the movie with Jareth being wished away and his mother trying to get him back. Very good art and I plan to continue on with the series.
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir is an Adult Scifi/Fantasy novel. The story is very hard to explain but its amazing. What I heard about the book was that it was lesbian necromancers in space and that was all I needed to know to pick it up but its much more than that.
The Anti-Virginity Pact by Katie Wismer is a new self published young adult contemporary. The book follows Mare and her best friend who have signed a pact agreeing that they won’t be virgins by the end of their senior year of high school. This is a hard hitting contemporary that deals with topics such as family and religion. I have a full review up as well.
Witchy by Ariel Slamet Ries is set in a world where length of ones hair determines your power as a witch but having too long of hair will get you killed. Nyneve has hidden her true hair length but when the Witch guard conscription comes around she decides that she will determine her own future. A short graphic novel that is the start of a new fantasy series. Great for young adult fan of graphic novels and comics.
Middlegame by Seanan McGuire is an adult fantasy novel about alchemy, language, math, and family. The story follows Roger and Dodger who were created by Reed to embody the Doctrine of Ethos which would allow someone to control how the world works. Adopted by different families Roger is all languages and works while Dodger is math and logic. When they connect as children talking to each other in their minds they know something is different about them and that it could be dangerous. I have a full review of this book but it is very hard to explain but is absolutely amazing and one of my new favorite books.
Five Nights at Freddy’s Fazbear Frights #2: Fetch by Scott Cawthon is the second collection of three short stories in the FNAF universe. The stories in this collection are Fetch, Lonely Freddy, and Out of Stock. Fetch follows a group of kids that find a animatronic dog inside an old Freddy’s Fazbear pizzeria that starts terrorizing them. Lonely Freddy is a creep story about a older brother who wants everyone to know how fake is younger sister is but things go bad at her birthday party at Freddy’s. The last story Out of Stock follows several kids that get their hand on a Plushtrap toy that seems to have very human eyes and teeth which then attacks them at night. Though I like how creepy these story collections can be I don’t like the fact that kids in the stories get hurt or punished for not knowing any better.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers is the first book in the Wayfarers series a series of slice of life adult science fiction novels. The story follows the crew of a tunneling ship the Wayfarer as they take on jobs creating tunnels between different planets. The is a character driven story that the plot takes second place to but I loved all the characters and their relationships. I have a full review for this book and I can’t wait to read the next in the series.
You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero is a self-help book about how everyone is a badass in their own way and how to stop messing around and get your life track. The author believes that if you set your mind on changing something you can do it if you are willing to put in the work. I listened to this and its a very short audio book which is what I wanted at the time. It has advice on many different topics but focuses on how mindset is everything. Good for someone looking to this kind of information and to be encouraged to do and change whatever to be a better, happier person.
The Hunger by Alma Katsu is a historical fiction novel with a bit of a supernatural twist. Follows the Donnor party and their attempt to travel to California. I like the ideas and concepts of the book but it jumps between too many characters. Because I this I didn’t really connect to the story or the characters which meant that I didn’t care what happen to them.
I watched three movies this month which I haven’t done in a while. The first movie I watched was Rocketman which is the musical about the life of Elton John. I didn’t know really anything about Elton John before watching the movie but I movie kept me interested. I think it would also make an amazing stage musical.
Knives Out is a murder mystery movie following death of crime novelist Harlan Thrombey the night of his 85th birthday. This is a murder mystery in the similar vein as Clue but not as comedic. I loved the ensemble cast and all the weird family drama that changed how I thought each character was involved. If you haven’t seen it yet I would highly recommend it.
The last movie I watched this month was Joker. This movie follows the origins of the DC and Batman villain The Joker. This is a very good movie that shows one mans decent into madness and how a person could become a villain like the Joker. I plan to have a full review out shortly but I would recommend seeing this movie if you haven’t already.
Summer Knight by Jim Butcher is the fourth book in the Dresden Files series. This book follows Dresden as he deals with the consequences of starting a war against the vampire courts. The main plot focuses more on the Fae Courts and his deal with Leananshidhe who sold it to Mab, the Winter Queen. Dresden must now work for Mab and attempt to find out who killed the Summer Knight.
The first book I read this month was Letters to the Pumpkin King by Seanan McGuire. This book is separated into three sections. Section one is comprised of essays and posts from Seanan’s blog. These essay cover everything from different aspects of fandom to writing advice and some more political topics. Sections two and three are reprints of previously published limited poetry collections. I preferred the first section as I’m not a huge fan of poetry. A fairly quick read that allows you to get into Seanan McGuire’s head a bit and understand where some of her ideas for stories come from.
Race the Sands by Sarah Beth Durst is a standalone young adult fantasy novel about racing monsters known as Kehoks. After an accident Tamra must find a new Kehok and rider who will win the upcoming races. Raia is running from her family and convinces Tamra that she can win. Through this meeting and attempting to win the Kehok races history could be changed. A very fast pace fantasy story about family and freedom. I won an advanced copy of the book from Goodreads and I have a full review up.
I Was Anastasia by Aariel Lawhon is the story of both Anastasia Romanov and Anna Anderson, the woman who claimed she was Anastasia who had survived the murder of the Romanov family. As we are reading two stories they start at different places and end where they met up. So Anastasia’s story stars at the beginning in 1919 while Anna Anderson starts at the end in 1970. An interesting way to tell the story that many know the answers to but wish that Anastasia had survived. Not my favorite historical fiction novel about this subject as I’m more interested in Anastasia and less of Anna Anderson who’s story is the main focus of the book.
