We were so lucky to have a warm and beautiful October that allowed us to spend more time than usual outside, but as I write this, it seems that luck has come to an end. Our first snowfall arrived on October 30, just in time for Halloween.

While I’m not a winter person, there is one benefit to the colder season that has finally arrived: curling up with a thick blanket, a warm hot chocolate, a wintery candle, and a good book. This is likely to be my setting for the next four months as we white-knuckle our way through another snow-filled season. 

Books Read in October 2023

Beyond being unseasonably warm, most of October was also incredibly busy. Between a ton of travel and a lot going on at home, I was genuinely shocked that I was able to get in as much reading as I did since it didn’t feel like I had a lot of unassigned downtime. I didn’t manage to add many books to my TBR, mostly because I was so slammed that I was just barely keeping my head above water, but what little downtime I did have, I spent reading books. 

Here’s a quick summary of what I managed to get through in October:

1. Fated Throne by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti—I’m continuing through the Zodiac Academy series and this book redeemed the whole experience for me. We finally got to see some positive developments and I’m super excited to continue now. I rated this book 5 stars and you can read my full review here.
2. Think Like A Monk by Jay Shetty—while not necessarily groundbreaking, I enjoyed this book, it served as an excellent reminder of the benefits of mindfulness and meditation. I rated this one 4 stars and you can read my full review here.
3. Zhara by S. Jae Jones—this was last month’s Illumicrate book and I didn’t end up reviewing it formally because it just wasn’t for me. It felt extremely young and I had a really difficult time relating to the characters. I rated this one 3 stars.
4. Wielder’s Bond by Melissa Mitchell—this was the second novella in the Lady Witch series and it was just as enjoyable (and even more spicy) than the first. I rated this one 4 stars and you can read my full review here.
5. A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas—this was a reread that I listened to on audiobook and I can confirm that it was as wonderful as my first time reading it. Several points had me crying in my car as I snuck in more reading in the travel I was doing. I’ll have a review for this one posted shortly, this was a 5-star read for me.
6. The Fragile Threads of Power by VE Schwab—this return to the Shades of Magic universe was everything I wanted it to be and then some. I loved this new direction, with new and old characters alike, and am still savouring how good it was. I rated this one 5 stars and my full review can be found here.
7. Infinity Alchemist by Kacen Callender—this was a complimentary ARC from Tor Teen and NetGalley and it was a thoroughly unique and enjoyable new YA fantasy stand-alone. I recommend this to YA readers who enjoy more complex and intricate fantasy. I rated this 4 stars and you can find my review here.
8. Love On The Brain by Ali Hazelwood—my first Ali Hazelwood novel and I loved it! The STEM and academia focus was so well executed and the romance had me swooning. I rated this one 4.5 stars with a full review coming soon.
9. Dear Girls by Ali Wong—I listened to this on audiobook which was the perfect medium given that Wong reads it herself with her signature comedy style. It was both raunchy and insightful and I devoured the book in just over a day. I rated this one 4.5 stars and my full review should come later next week.
10. A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid—what a gorgeously haunting novel. Reid did a magnificent job of creating a thoroughly relatable and heartbreaking character in a fantasy world with aspects of magical realism. I loved this book, I rated it 5 stars and will certainly have a full review shortly.

TBR Lists

To be 100% honest, I was so busy in October that I barely had the mental capacity to do anything other than get lost in a book. This meant that I wasn’t paying a ton of attention to new book promotions, and thus, didn’t add a ton to my TBR. There were a few notable mentions though that I’m hoping to get to sometime shortly:

• The Dead Take The A Train by Cassandra Khaw and Richard Kadrey—this sounds like a unique gritty contemporary fantasy about New York’s magical underbelly, combining so many of the things I love in a book. Definitely can’t wait to read this one.
• Manacled by SenLinYu—I’ve never read a fanfic before, but I have always loved Harry Potter, and this month I saw several people get completely devastated by this book. I think this one is going to be my first foray into the dramoine world. 
• Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein—a non-fiction exploration into digital reflections that sounds equal parts intriguing and chilling. Hoping I might be able to consume this one via audiobook. 

What I’m Loving Right Now

October’s schedule was full to the brim, but I still managed to squeeze in some really fun stuff just for me. Some of the things I enjoyed the most this month included:

My Local Annual Used Book Sale

Every year, a local literacy charity hosts an enormous used book sale in my city and this year, one of my bffs and I made sure we were among the first to get in. I only spent $34 and snagged at least ten books, some of which are brand new hardcovers worth over $50 themselves. It was a great year for selection and I absolutely love the tradition of getting into line early and then sprinting around the hockey arena to try to snatch the best books.

Pumpkin Carving with Family

This year, I had to travel a fair bit right around Halloween and found myself staying with my family in another province. Being away from family means you often miss out on the fun, small holiday traditions that lead into whatever holiday is being celebrated, but being present for once meant that I got to carve pumpkins with my 2-year-old niece and my 5-year-old nephew. It was an absolute blast and everyone had so much fun that I want to get more activities like this in with my family in the coming holiday season. 

Romance Novels

If you’ve been following my reading journey for any length of time, you’d know it’s rare that I read romance novels. It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s more just that I love fantasy and always have so many books in that genre to read that I don’t get around to others. This month I was able to squeeze in a couple of romance novels though and I forgot how ridiculously fun and heartwarming they can be. Sometimes it’s so nice to just be assured you’re getting a happy ending and that things will turn out how you want them to, even if the journey is bumpy. I’m going to try to squeeze more romances in before the end of the year.

So that was October! I’m anticipating a busy November as well, but am also so excited to be barreling towards the holidays that I don’t mind it a bit.