September 2022 Reading Wrap-Up

Since we bookworms can’t help ourselves from sharing (and curiously wanting to know) what other bookworms have read – I’m going to reintroduce my monthly wrap-up articles. The list of what I read and an itty bitty thought on each! 

Stats:

• Total Books Read: 10 
• Average Rating: 3.8
• Audiobooks: 2
• Best Book: Inkheart by Cornelia Funke 
• Least Favourite Book: Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce 

Fiction:

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches (3.75*)

Written by Sangu Mandanna

Published by Berkely Books

A cozy, charming spin between House in the Cerulean Sea, Practical Magic, and romance. I listened to this as an audiobook but might have made for a better read as sometimes the narrator came across a bit too twee and saccharine for my liking. This will be everywhere this fall and should be added to your TBR if you’re looking for fall + cozy + magic.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

Miss Benson’s Beetle (3*)

Written by Rachel Joyce

Published by Dial Press

This unlikely friendship story between two very different women set in the 1950s, who join together on a hare brained expedition to find a rare beetle, should’ve topped my favourites list. But all the humour and heart couldn’t make me love or care for these characters that got lost in a bogged down, repetitive plot line – face big bad, bicker, help each other through, bond, face next big bad. And the characters themselves, while their relationship grew, they themselves stayed pretty static.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

On the Roof Top (3.5*)

Written by Margaret Wilkerson Sexton

Published by Ecco Press

I liked it, didn’t love it. The premise of this story – a mother who wants better for her three girls in 1950s San Francisco – tries hard to get the young women a record deal. Each woman however wants something different with her life. Racism and gentrification and four character POVs burden a plot that was weighed down by confusing (sometimes conflicting) exploratory prose. Some truly beautiful passages exist among the pages, but the whole work is a bit muddled.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

Wrong Place, Wrong Time (4*)

Written by Gillian McAllister

Published by William Morrow & Company

Taking me a while to get into the story, I eventually settled into this thriller? mystery? time travel? novel about a mother who witnesses her son commit murder then subsequently starts travelling backward in time, hoping to prevent the crime. Solidly entertaining and quick.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

The Thursday Murder Club (4*)

Written by Richard Osman

Published by Penguin Books

Having watched and loved Only Murders in the Building, I was on the hunt for more mysteries. This novel is rumoured to be the launching point for the show, so I gave it a try! So, so good! So much humour, such lively characters, and a smart, quick plot. Trigger Warning? Surprisingly, a lot of suicide, is woven into this “light hearted” comedy mystery.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

YA:

Fable (4.5*)

Written by Adrienne Young

Published by Wednesday Books

Highly enjoyed this one and wish I hadn’t waited so long to try it! I struggled at the beginning to gain my bearings here, but once I did I escaped away on a pirate ship with a truly kickass heroine (who spends the entirety of this novel in some state of bruised, broken and bleeding). Vivd description and a fresh pirate-y plot, with a non cringey YA romance.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

The Drowned Woods (4*)

Written Emily Lloyd Jones

Published by Little Brown Books for Young Readers

I really like Emily’s writing and have read most (maybe all?) her novels. This is a very entertaining story of unique, wicked magic, a corrupt and evil prince, and an unlikely gang of misfits trying to put an end to his reign of terror. I really enjoyed the central few characters but do feel the novel might have been enhanced by trimming out a few. The six characters took time away from the ones that really shine and overall I’m not entirely happy with the ending and consequences for some characters.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

Middle Grade:

Girl Giant and the Monkey King (3*)

Written by Van Hoang

Published by Square Fish

It was fine, okay. A bit boring, repetitive, and ultimately kind of forgetful. An overall fine middle grade, Chinese mythology, contemporary story about a girl blessed? cursed? with supernatural strength and so desperate to rid herself of it that she makes a deal with the trickster Monkey King. I simply found that it didn’t stick out or stay with me as I’d hoped given its strong start.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

Fenris & Mott (4*)

Written by Greg Van Eekhout

Published by HarperCollins

A pleasant surprise! A girl crosses paths with a cute puppy that turns out to be Fenris, moon eater and world ender, and she vows to keep him safe while trying to prevent the world ending Ragnarok. I knew to expect Greg’s humour, but I was really blown away by his well drawn connection between our current climate disaster and Ragnarok. I loved the friendship in this story.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

Inkheart (5*)

Written by Cornelia Funke

Published by Scholastic

Finally read this classic! Listening to it on audiobook made me feel like a kid again being sucked into a really good, read aloud story in early Elementary. Definitely went darker than I was anticipating at times (which I was fine with), and maybe was too long in the tooth, but that’s part and parcel with these classic fantasy stories – a la The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.

You can find it here: Bookshop.org

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