Monthly Wrap-Up: October 2019

Good morning!! I hope you had a great weekend. It is already the second week of November, and I’m just posting my wrap-up for October, but I guess it’s better late than never!

October was a pretty good month, especially reading wise. I was lacking in the blogging department, but I managed to read a lot more, and I did write some posts, so I guess it was still somewhat a success.

Let’s take a deeper look!

Books:

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Covers are from Goodreads

Guys. I read THIRTEEN books. In ONE month. *goes off to squeal proudly and excitedly* I feel like I deserve a medal for this accomplishment. This was the first month that I had a TBR, and I’ve actually read most of the books on it, except for a few. I’m definitely going to have another TBR for November. I’m now only 6 books behind on my GR challenge, and I have 20 books to read to reach my goal of 100 by the end of December, so wish me luck guys!

The titles lead to my unofficial reviews on Goodreads (a few include a good deal of crying and excitement and there is also a rant…)

Books	Author	Rating	Book Type
Palace of Spies	Sarah Zettel	★★★☆☆	E-book
Dangerous Deceptions	Sarah Zettel	★★★☆☆	E-book
Three Days Missing	Kimberly Belle	★★★★☆	E-book
Girls Like Us	Gail Giles	★★★★★	E-book
The Victim of the System	Steve Hadden	★★☆☆☆	E-book (for review)
Before We Were Strangers	Brenda Novak	★★★☆☆	E-book
The Wrath and the Dawn	Renée Ahdieh	★★★★☆	E-book
The Rose and the Dagger	Renée Ahdieh	★★★★★	E-book
Escaping From Houdini	Kerri Maniscalco	1.5 stars	E-book
Throne of Glass	Sarah J. Maas	★★★☆☆	E-book
Vengeful	V. E. Schwab	★★★★★	Hardcover
The Lovely and the Lost	Jennifer Lynn Barnes	★★★☆☆	Hardcover
Assassin’s Masque	Sarah Zettel	★★★☆☆	Hardcover

I also wrote a few official reviews (linked below), but I’m still behind on so many.

The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee // Rating: ★★★★★ One sentence summary: An interesting historical fiction novel with amazing characters and diverse topics.

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman // Rating: ★★★★★ One sentence summary: A heartbreaking, yet funny book with beautiful characters.

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim // Rating: ★★★★☆ One sentence summary: A great fantasy with awesome characters, and a few flaws.

The Victim of the System by Steve Hadden // Rating: ★★☆☆☆ One sentence summary: This was a meh thriller with disappointing characters, and some unbelievable twists.

Total Number of Books Read This Month: 13

Total reviews: 4

Tags:

I took part in Bookending Autumn 2019, and wrote three posts. Technically, I only did one tag, but who cares about technicalities?

Garden of Evil (Prompt by Jamsu @ Jamsu Dreams)

Study Group (Prompt by Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads)

Spicy Pumpkin Latte Book Tag (Prompt by Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads)

Let’s Talk Bookish:

October 4: Star Ratings – Are they fair or necessary?

October 11: Sexual Content in YA – Is there too much sexual content in YA books? (suggested by Ruqs @ Many Things Bookish)

October 18: What are some tropes/characters that you think are poorly or under represented in books?

October 25: Are TBR’s necessary to be considered a book blogger, or reader? (suggested by Heran @ Be Frisky)

Great Posts From Around the Blog-O-Sphere:

Caitlin discusses Why Reading Is So Unpopular and honestly, all her points are pretty accurate, but I still love reading anyways.

Christina is back and I’m so excited!! Check out her amazing review of The Toll!

Line wrote an amazing post about Underrepresented Tropes and Characters in Books.

Marie talks about what How to Make it as a Book Blogger.

Anything Else?

I hit 200 followers!! I’m planning on doing a Q&A soon, so if you’d like to ask me a question, head over here to ask! I also had over 1,000 views which is another accomplishment that I’m really proud of, especially since my posting was pretty irregular. So thank you guys so much for that!!

IRL, it’s so cold. Like really really ice-on-the-grass-and-roofs kind of cold. Which is something because this is Georgia that we are talking about. I’m semi-loving it, semi-hating it because now it’s not burning hot, but it’s also a little too cold for comfort.

Anyways, school is kind of stressful, but it’s not as bad as testing season, so I’m pretty happy about that. I’m feeling really good about the number of books that I read, and I really hope to do just as good this month, and also get back to properly blogging and maybe get rid of my backlogged reviews.

That’s A Wrap!

That’s it! In the end, I read 13 books, did 4 reviews, 3 “tags”, and 4 discussion posts. 5 of the 13 books were either 4 or 5 stars, which I’m pretty happy about, especially since most of the others were 3 stars, and only 2 of them were below that.

I met most of my goals for October, so hopefully for November, I’ll read at least 10 books, do 4 reviews, 3 or 4 tags, and 3 more discussions.

And that’s it for this wrap-up! How was October for you? Did you get as much reading as you wanted done? Have you read any of the books that I did? Did you take part in BE Autumn? Is it freezing where you are? What’s you #1 most anticipated release for this month? Let’s chat in the comments below!

Spicy Pumpkin Latte Book Tag | Bookending Autumn 2019

Hello, and how are you? I hope your week has been great so far! Today, I’ll be sharing with you my last #BEAutumn2019 post. You can learn more about BE Autumn, see the rules and the rest of October’s topics, and sign up over on Sam’s page @ Sam Fictionally.

You can also follow them @bookend_events for more updates!!

Today, I’m going to be doing the Spicy Pumpkin Latte Tag hosted by the amazing Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads.

Spicy Pumpkin Latte Book Tag: Autumn is when the beverage names at the local coffee shop start to look more like a harvest produce list than anything from a drinks menu. What better way to celebrate this oddity than to do an autumnal drinks book tag?!

I’ve never had a latte, or coffee for that matter, or any of the drinks listed below. I’m more of a black tea, juice, soda, or water kind of girl. But this still sounds super fun, so let’s get started!!

Pumpkin Spice Latte: A book you didn’t think you’d love

My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows.

I really did not expect to love this as much as I did. When I read it, I wasn’t really a big fan of fantasy, however I loved it. The humor, the plot, the fantasy/paranormal aspects, it was all so awesome.

I loved, G, Jane, Edward (especially Edward), and all the other various characters. They were all hilarious and I love how the authors based it on history, and then changed it in such an amazing way! Humor + historical fiction (based on history) + fantasy = awesomeness!!!

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Hot Apple Cider: A book that got you a bit hot under the collar

A Spy in the House (The Agency Series) by Y. S. Lee

This isn’t really much? But it does get a little bit more…passionate in the later books 🙂

Anyways, this still has an awesome plot, and it’s set in the Victorian Era. It’s a great series. and I love Mary and her fierceness. She’s also a new and interesting character who is different and considered inferior in her time. She’s a pretty great detective and is really determined and brave.

The mysteries are pretty great, and I finished the whole series pretty quickly. Oh, and James is an absolute darling 💖 Absolutely, annoyingly, handsomely, a bit over protective, but also super kind, and definitely a perfect darling.

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Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate: A book that felt like a warm hug

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

I really loved this book for its representation, the great characters, the food, and the writing style. It was super heartwarming to read about Emoni’s struggles, how she overcame them, her family (Buela and Babygirl are the sweetest), and her awesome friends, especially Angelica.

I also really loved the way the book was written-it felt like I was in Emoni’s head and reading her words, not just being told a story in a more formal way. And let’s not forget the amazing food in this book. There are no words to describe the deliciousness of it all. It made me want to fly into the kitchen and whip up a mess lol.

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Maple Pecan Latte: A book you enjoyed that was hard to get into

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

It took me 19 days to finally get past the first 10%. It was slow. Like, really slow. The murder mystery is interesting, Kya’s life is interesting, the back story is interesting but wow, it is so so slow, and it was until around the last third-ish of the book that the pace began to pick up.

However, I still gave it 4 stars because this is supposed to be a slow read, that is heavy on the description of the Marsh, and of Kya’s life before the murder. The murder mystery was a pretty small aspect of the book compared to the rest of it. But I still enjoyed it. I pushed myself to finish it (and I did skim some of the description), and I’m pretty glad that I did, because I eventually liked Kya and all her friends, and it saved me from DNFing. The only reason that I picked it up, was because of the mystery and the odd characters, so it was disappointing to see that it wasn’t a major part of the story, but I ended up liking the characters and the coming-of-age aspect much more instead.

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London Fog: A vanilla character

Nobody by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

This was such a disappointing book. Absolutely disappointing. I hated Claire. I hated Nix. The idea of the story was okay, but the execution was horrible. This was more like a horrible Disney princess movie with a dark boy who falls in love with a girl who has never been noticed. And this girl is the most annoying character ever.

As soon as Claire meets Nix, she falls in love with him because he’s the only one who has noticed her. Hello? He noticed you because he was supposed to kill you. But obviously that’s just a technicality that doesn’t matter. And then after that, all Claire can think about is her darling Nix, and her new super powers… It’s just a horrible book, and Claire is annoying and intolerable.

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Hot Buttered Rum: A book that was velvety smooth to read

Palace of Spies by Sarah Zettel

I don’t think this is really velvety smooth? But it’s an easy espionage story and I liked it. Nothing super amazing, but good enough that I’ve continued on with the series.

The ending does get intense, and the court drama and intrigue is very interesting, but I also feel like it was just meh, nothing super remarkable, but pretty nice to read. I don’t really like Peggy, I wish Olivia had a bigger role from the first book (she’d make a great spy), and the drama with Sophy Howe is maybe a bit much, but it’s also kind of hilarious to read.

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Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew: A character whose temperament is icy cold

The Great Lady Sarnai from Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim

She’s cruel. Unbelievably so. It’s kind of interesting, while terrifying to read about at the same time. She has no sympathy or feelings for anyone (besides the guy she loved and whom she now can’t marry) and she terrorizes everyone wherever she goes.

But she’s also sad, lonely, being used as a peace pawn, and her way of life being discarded so that she can become a woman she doesn’t want to be. So it’s also kind of understandable. But then, her heart is obviously made of ice, because there was a certain point in the book where I though she might change, but instead she was absolutely brutal.

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Salted Caramel Mocha: A book that you’re salty about

Escaping From Houdini by Kerri Maniscalco

This book was a mess. An utter mess. Audrey Rose completely went off the rails in this one. She stopped trusting our dearest Cresswell, and trusted a self-confessed liar and con man. Think about that for a minute. Cresswell who has been with her through hell and back, Cresswell who’s never attempted to cage her, and has always respected and admired her, Cresswell who would probably walk across a volcano barefoot to save her life, was deemed not trustworthy enough to keep/properly react to the secret Audrey Rose was trying to keep with a LIAR.

This makes no sense, and honestly, if you want to read the full rant head right over here, because the above is only part of the tragedy that is this book. It’s definitely the most disappointing book from the series so far.

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Honey Bee Latte: A character who is sweet

Jude from The Lovely and the Lost by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

To be honest, JLB always manages to write amazing characters, the serious ones, the destructive/rule breaker ones, and the sweet-bring-a-smile-to-your-face kind of ones.

Jude is the latter. He is eternally optimistic and he always finds the good or bright side of things. I also love him because he was there for Kira, always supported her, and diffused situations spectacularly. He’s just a super sweet warm bun who cares more about others and about their feelings than for his own. And he forgives so easily and never holds a grudge against anyone.

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Gingerbread Latte: A character you’d take home for Christmas

I have no idea? I don’t celebrate Christmas, and honestly, I’m not sure if I want to bring any character home for any celebration because it would probably end up in a disaster. An absolute disaster. It’s either they are super fun but destructive, or they are the kind to just sit there glowering and being absolutely unreasonable (and possibly the ones who someone might decide to pick a fight with, and then I have to make sure they don’t end up dead). Neither is a very good option for a party…

Tagging

Caitlin @ Caitlin Althea | Kat @ Novels and Waffles | Evelyn @ Evelyn Reads | Jane @ Blogger Books | Charlotte @ Bewitching Books, Ravenous Reads

*P.S. No pressure if you don’t want to do the tag!!

This was so much fun to do, and if you’d like to do the tag, go right ahead! Be sure to link back so I can see your answers as well!! See you guys tomorrow!

Study Group | Bookending Autumn 2019

Good morning and welcome back! I am very excited to be taking part in BE Autumn this year, and I think today’s topic is awesome!! But first, if you want to take part and learn more, head right over to Sam @ Fictionally Sam to see the rules and the rest of October’s topics!!

You can also follow them @bookend_events for more updates!

Today’s prompt, brought to us by Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads, is:

Study Group: Fall is back to school and you need to organize a study group. Pick eight characters and discuss which subjects they bring their expertise to.

I’m currently still in school, so I’m excited to use my courses for this year, though I’m going to change a few, and find characters who were born to study whatever course. And maybe they can come do my class work for me??

American Literature

Audrey Rose Wadsworth

In Hunting Prince Dracula, Audrey Rose’s love of books is super evident, and I feel like she would be thrilled to read and analyze all sorts of texts.

Also, considering the fact that we’re reading books from around her time period in class, I’m sure it’d be much easier for her to relate or understand these books, compared to my 21st century born self.

Algebra

Jack Cole

In reality, I’m actually taking Geometry, which I’m liking, but I struggled a bit with Algebra, so I’m swapping them. Quadratic functions, parabolas, all of that stuff was not really that much fun for me, but I liked solving for x or drawing normal graphs. Geometry, so far, seems kind of easier.

Jack is a child genius, and I’m sure he would love studying Algebra, or any math course in general. There were a series of equations in the book that he instantly solved and I think that that is proof enough that he will be an awesome Algebra student.

Science

Victor Vale

My actual course is Physical Science. I don’t like science much, and I’m pretty surprised to find that I’m liking the atoms/periodic table aspect, which is more Chemistry than Physical Science, but that’s what we’re learning 🤷‍♀️

Victor Vale is a genius when it comes to Science and biology (in a way). I loved reading about EO’s and how their powers worked and the experiments were fun and terrifying at the same time. Since he’s still alive to tell the tale, I think it is safe to assume that Victor would be perfect for my science class.

Spanish

Margaret (Peggy) Fitzroy

Yo estudio español en la escuela y es muy divertido aprender un nuevo idioma. Translation: “I study Spanish in school and it is very fun to learn a new language.” I won’t lie, I used Google Translate for the last part of the sentence. What can I say? I’m still learning.

As a spy in the royal court, Peggy speaks Latin, German, French, and English, so she obviously would be the perfect pupil for my Spanish class. And maybe she’d be so kind to teach me German and French…

Culinary Arts

Emoni Santiago

I actually don’t have a culinary arts class, but if my school offered it, I sure would take it! Also, I don’t think I have a character who would be awesome at Business and Technology, which is my usual class.

Emoni loves to cook. She has a gift when it comes to being in the kitchen and all the cooking and food that happens in this book is mouth-watering. She also takes Culinary Arts in her high school anyway so she’s obviously very perfectly suitable for this class.

Intro to Crimes and Heists

Kaz Brekker

Okay. Yes. I know. There is no way that my school is teaching about crime and heists, but a girl can wish. I usually have World History, but I can’t think of any character who’s good at history. And so, I chose a course I’d love to take!!

Of course Kaz is the master of heists and crime and I couldn’t pick a more perfect student. However, he’d probably end up teaching the class since he knows a whole lot more than the teacher…

These are only 6 characters, and I actually only have 6 courses in real life, so I’m not sure what other courses/who else to put to make it 8.

That’s it for this post! Which characters would you want to do your classes for you? What’s a course that you wish you could take? Do/did you like your classes in school? Chat with me in the comments below!

WWW Wednesday #33

Hey friends! I hope you are having a fantastic day! It is time for my weekly reading update, WWW Wednesday. WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words.

The Three W’s are:

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?

Let’s get started!

All covers are from Goodreads

What I Just Finished:

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I READ FIVE BOOKS!!!!! IN ONE WEEK!!! *runs off to squeal excitedly*

Palace of Spies and Dangerous Deceptions were good. It’s an easy spy mystery, and I liked the historical aspect. However, I didn’t really like Peggy, we barely know much about Matthew, and it felt rather meh. But it’s fun, fairly simple, and I still want to read the last book in the series.

Three Days Missing was very good, very suspenseful, and I was super nervous and couldn’t put the book down. I really could not. I finished it the same day I started because it was that addictive. Sadly, the moment the bad guy was introduced, I knew it right away and it turns out I was right.

I was given a copy of The Victim of the System by Reedsy for review, and it was good. I liked the plot, however, I didn’t really connect to the characters or to Ike. My review will be up on the 24th.

Girls Like Us is more like a novella, and I immensely enjoyed reading it. Quincy’s growth was amazing, and I loved Biddy. She was really sweet, and so generous and such a great friend. Honestly, I want to read more about them. The chapters were short, and I loved how it alternated between the two girls POVs. I really loved this one.

What I’m Currently Reading:

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I’m just about to start both of these, so hopefully I’ll like them!

What I Plan To Read Next:

Next up, I’m probably gonna read A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena.

That’s it for this Wednesday. What are you reading? Have you read any of the books above? What did you think? Let’s chat in the comments below! (Be sure to link to your WWW’s so that I can check them out!)

October 2019 TBR

Hola and welcome back!! Today I’m going to share with you my very first TBR post! Actually, to be honest, I think I did a TBR post back at the beginning of the year for a bunch of reading challenges that I was going to do. However, I have not kept track, nor followed through with those challenges, so I shall consider this, my first TBR post.

I am behind on my GoodReads reading challenge and I want to catch up. And so, to kind of push/motivate myself to read more, I’ve decided to try writing a TBR post.

Let’s get started!

*Girls Like Us by Gail Giles.

Synopsis: We understand stuff. We just learn it slow. And most of what we understand is that people what ain’t Speddies think we too stupid to get out our own way. And that makes me mad.

Quincy and Biddy are both graduates of their high school’s special ed program, but they couldn’t be more different: suspicious Quincy faces the world with her fists up, while gentle Biddy is frightened to step outside her front door. When they’re thrown together as roommates in their first “real world” apartment, it initially seems to be an uneasy fit. But as Biddy’s past resurfaces and Quincy faces a harrowing experience that no one should have to go through alone, the two of them realize that they might have more in common than they thought — and more important, that they might be able to help each other move forward.

Hard-hitting and compassionate, Girls Like Us is a story about growing up in a world that can be cruel, and finding the strength — and the support — to carry on.

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*Three Days Missing by Kimberly Belle.

Synopsis: It’s every parent’s worst nightmare: the call that comes in the middle of the night.

When Kat Jenkins awakens to the police on her doorstep, her greatest fear is realized. Her nine-year-old son, Ethan, is missing—vanished from the cabin where he’d been on an overnight field trip with his class. Shocked and distraught, Kat rushes to the campground where he was last seen. But she’s too late; the authorities have returned from their search empty-handed after losing Ethan’s trail in the mountain forest.

Another mother from the school, Stef Huntington, seems like she has it all: money, prominence in the community, a popular son and a loving husband. She hardly knows Kat, except for the vicious gossip that swirls around Kat’s traumatic past. But as the police investigation unfolds, Ethan’s disappearance will have earth-shattering consequences in Stef’s own life—and the paths of these two mothers are about to cross in ways no one could have anticipated.

Racing against the clock, their desperate search for answers begins—one where the greatest danger could lie behind the everyday smiles of those they trust the most.

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*Palace of Spies by Sarah Zettel. (Read Oct 4th)

Synopsis: A warning to all young ladies of delicate breeding who wish to embark upon lives of adventure: Don’t.

Sixteen-year-old Peggy is a well-bred orphan who is coerced into posing as a lady in waiting at the palace of King George I. Life is grand, until Peggy starts to suspect that the girl she’s impersonating might have been murdered. Unless Peggy can discover the truth, she might be doomed to the same terrible fate. But in a court of shadows and intrigue, anyone could be a spy—perhaps even the handsome young artist with whom Peggy is falling in love…

History and mystery spark in this effervescent series debut.

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*Dangerous Deceptions by Sarah Zettel. (Read Oct 6th)

Synopsis: As a lady in waiting in King George’s London court, Peggy has survived a forced betrothal, royal scandals, and an attempt or two on her life. And now she has a new problem: her horrible fiancé has returned to claim her! To save her neck, or at least her hand in marriage, Peggy joins forces with her cousin Olivia and her sweetheart, Matthew. But if she doesn’t play her cards right, her career as courtier and spy might come to an end at the bottom of the river Thames . . . 

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*The Assassin’s Masque by Sarah Zettel.

Synopsis: Things are turning around for seventeen-year-old Peggy Fitzroy, a once-orphaned spy. Her father is back from the dead, and her unwanted engagement has been called off for good. But when a mysterious veiled woman shows up, Peggy uncovers a fresh slew of questions about her past, present, and future.
Now Peggy is back at the palace, unsure of the loyalties she thought she held. With the Jacobite uprising stalking ever closer to the throne, it’s imperative that Peggy discover who she can really trust. Can she save herself and the royal family, or is she doomed as a pawn in this most deadly game?

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*Before We Were Strangers by Brenda Novak.

Synopsis: Five-year-old Sloane McBride couldn’t sleep that night. Her parents were arguing again, their harsh words heating the cool autumn air. And then there was that other sound–the ominous thump before all went quiet.

In the morning, her mother was gone. The official story was that she left. Her loving, devoted mother! That hadn’t sat any better at the time than it did when Sloane moved out at eighteen, anxious to leave her small Texas hometown in search of anywhere else. But not even a fresh start working as a model in New York could keep the nightmares at bay. Or her fears that the domineering father she grew up with wasn’t just difficult–he was deadly.

Now another traumatic loss forces Sloane to realize she owes it to her mother to find out the truth, even if it means returning to a small town full of secrets and lies, a jilted ex-boyfriend and a father and brother who’d rather see her silenced. But as Sloane starts digging into the past, the question isn’t whether she can uncover what really happened that night…it’s what will remain of her family if she does?

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*The Wrath and the Dawn by Renée Ahdieh.

One Life to One Dawn.

Synopsis: In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad’s dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph’s reign of terror once and for all.

Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she’d imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It’s an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid’s life as retribution for the many lives he’s stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?

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*The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

Synopsis: It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will be busier still.

By her brother’s graveside, Liesel’s life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger’s Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordian-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library, wherever there are books to be found.

But these are dangerous times. When Liesel’s foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel’s world is both opened up, and closed down.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.

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*A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena.

Synopsis: In this neighborhood, danger lies close to home. A domestic thriller packed full of secrets, and a twisty story that never stops—from the bestselling author of The Couple Next Door

He looks at her, concerned. “How do you feel?” She wants to say, Terrified. Instead, she says, with a faint smile, “Glad to be home.”

Karen and Tom Krupp are happy—they’ve got a lovely home in upstate New York, they’re practically newlyweds, and they have no kids to interrupt their comfortable life together. But one day, Tom returns home to find Karen has vanished—her car’s gone and it seems she left in a rush. She even left her purse—complete with phone and ID—behind.

There’s a knock on the door—the police are there to take Tom to the hospital where his wife has been admitted. She had a car accident, and lost control as she sped through the worst part of town.

The accident has left Karen with a concussion and a few scrapes. Still, she’s mostly okay—except that she can’t remember what she was doing or where she was when she crashed. The cops think her memory loss is highly convenient, and they suspect she was up to no good.

Karen returns home with Tom, determined to heal and move on with her life. Then she realizes something’s been moved. Something’s not quite right. Someone’s been in her house. And the police won’t stop asking questions.

Because in this house, everyone’s a stranger. Everyone has something they’d rather keep hidden. Something they might even kill to keep quiet.

I’ve already read two books, and I hope I manage to read some, or hopefully all, the rest of these! I might do a few buddy reads, but nothing is final yet, so I didn’t add those here.

What are you planning to read this October? Have you read any of these books? What’s your most anticipated read for the end of the year? Chat with me in the comments below!!