October has gone by really slowly for me, but it’s finally the end of the month, which means a reading wrap up and Halloween!
My October
This month has been very mixed for me. At the beginning of the month I was run down from college and stress, so it was not a productive time (but I did stay in bed and read more, so it was in a way?!). When I recovered, I had to finish my university UCAS application. I was so nervous to send it off, but I’ve had a few offers already so the only thing to worry about next is the Oxford HAT (History Aptitude Test) at the start of November! Thankfully, the half term holiday gave me a much needed break and more time to read. I haven’t done many spooky things for Halloween yet, but I’ll be watching lots of horror films on the day!
Reading Stats
I read 12 books and 4,334 pages (including 2 books that I’m still reading but will finish by the end of October)! I will have read 6 more books and over 1000 more pages than last month, so it’s good progress. I’m also on track for my 55 books goal for the year.
- 7 e-books (including 3 ARCs), 4 physical books, 1 audiobook
- Average rating of 3.9
- 3 fantasy, 3 non-fiction, 2 historical fiction, 1 mystery, 1 horror, 1 sci-fi, 1 contemporary
- 10 adult, 2 young-adult
I’ve started using Netgalley more – I’m trying to build up my profile right now. My average rating is pretty normal, but I’m surprised that I only read 2 YA books!
Readathons
This month I participated in the Trick or T(read)athon! The books I chose for the prompts are quite different from the ones I originally planned in my October reading plan, so I’ll list the final matches here:
- Witch (female mc who would hex you if you meesed with her): Mexican Gothic
- Vampire (love interest who you shouldn’t meet in a dark alley): Crooked Kingdom
- Werewolf (only read at night): If We Were Villains
- Ghost (set in a place you’d want to haunt): The Miniaturist
- Demon (multiple POVs): Vicious
- Fae (intimidating book): Sword of Kaigen
- Siren (recommended to you): The Silence of Girls
- Zombie (involves a disaster): The Space Between Worlds
The Books!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This was a great month for 5 star reads! I love these with all my heart,
The Sword of Kaigen: My essay review with all my thoughts is here! I’m so glad I picked this up.
Crooked Kingdom: I loved this even more than Six of Crows. I’m still going to be thinking about the characters and Kaz’s crazy plan for a long time (and trying to forget about what happened to one character!).
Mexican Gothic: Read my Goodreads review for more in-depth thoughts, but I was not expecting to like this as much. A lot of people have rated it 5 stars… or 2 stars. Thankfully, I was in the 5 star camp! The writing style, atmosphere and creepiness was everything I wanted, as well as some great characters to root for.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Space Between Worlds: Check out my review here. This one is definitely more of a 4.5 stars, because it was beautiful.
Vicious: I really loved this fast paced book that subverted the idea of superheroes! Eli felt a bit one-dimensional for me, but I loved the found family trio and I can’t wait to read the sequel soon.
How to Survive in Ancient Rome: I’ll be writing more about this soon, but this was such a fun and quick read about life in Ancient Rome, that actually included women and slaves!
If We Were Villains: I was tempted to rate it 5 stars for the atmosphere alone. A few things, like characters, hold it back, but this book is captivating and haunting. I want to read more Shakespeare now!
The Silence of the Girls: Again, this is more of a 4.5 stars. I loved this retelling of the Iliad (I will never get enough of Classical retellings) and the focus on Briseis, as well as Achilles and Patroclus’ relationship, was so refreshing.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sex and Sexuality in Georgian Britain: This was a really interesting view into Georgian Britain. I found myself skipping some parts, since there were a lot of stories and detail that saturated what the author was trying to say, but it was still an enjoyable read.
Charles I’s Executioners: I’d probably rate this 2.5 stars, but I’m feeling generous so here it is. It was quite dry, but explored the different motivations of the regicides like it set out to do. If I wasn’t studying Stuart history I would have been very lost and bored, but it gave some interesting detail to my course.
Unfinished
The Miniaturist: I’ve got about 100 pages left, and right now I’m predicting it to be 3-4 stars. The setting of Amsterdam is beautiful but it is also a time of an oppressive religious society.
Furia: My one audiobook and contemporary of the month! I’m about halfway through so I can’t rate it yet, but so far I’m really enjoying it.
Thanks for reading? How was your October, and do you have any plans for Halloween?
—ella♥
ella isn’t writing 