September is over and I for one am very happy about that. I know many of you love September and the fall months it ushers in. Before getting fully on board with fall, I’ve had to get over two big hurdles. Summer is my season and I spent the first half of the month mourning its passing. (A rainy couple of weeks helped with that!) Next, I had to dig myself out from the mountain of work that always comes with the start of a new school year. I MIGHT have done that now, but only time will tell on that one. I definitely turned to books to comfort me through this rough month, somehow getting ELEVEN in! Anyway, fall is here and I’m ready. Bring on Halloween, Thanksgiving and the rest of the holidays.

{My September, Books & Blog}

The Cream of the Crop

Books I enjoyed the most…

• The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker – What can I say? I’ve become a huge fan of Greek mythology retellings. It started with Madeline Miller and Circe (my review), and continued on this month with Barker’s take on The Iliad from a female perspective. (my review)
• The Deeper the Water the Uglier the Fish by Katya Apekina – I keep mentioning what a great year this has been for debuts and can hardly wait to do my best debuts post. Without a doubt The Deeper the Water the Uglier the Fish will be on that list. (my review)
• Waiting for Eden by Elliot Ackerman – This was my unexpected eleventh book for September. I’d heard about it early in the month, was reminded of it last Thursday, started it Friday night, and was done by early Saturday. (my review will post on Thursday)

A Cut Above

Great stories…

• One True Thing by Anna Quindlen – I’m an Anna Quindlen newbie, but I’m making up for lost time. One True Thing was my third Quindlen book this year and I recently realized that I’ve listened to all of them. With this and other backlist books I often am reading just for me, and so there will be no formal review.
• Katerina by James Frey – This might have been the book that surprised me the most this month. My expectations were low, but after only a couple dozen pages I was hooked and breezed through Frey’s new novel of a young writer at 21 and forty something. (my review)
• Foe by Iain Reid – The guys were working for me in September. Reid’s slightly odd, semi-dystopian novel was a book I simply couldn’t put down. Though very different Foe kept you guessing every bit as much as I’m Thinking of Ending Things, his debut (my review).
• The Wildlands by Abby Geni – This audiobook had me making up excuses to go on long walks or get in the car and drive somewhere, anywhere. Geni’s story of siblings divided in the wake of multiple tragedies was really THAT good! (my review)
• Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn – With all the talk about Sharp Objects on HBO, I thought it was about time I finally get to this book. It proved to be a perfect book to listen to. The story made me squirm at times, but I was always completely engaged in this thriller. It’s another back list book just for me.
• All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung – I rounded out the month with a memoir and my first nonfiction book since July. I’ll be reviewing this account of a young Korean woman’s journey to find and connect with the family who gave her up very soon.

Subpar

Books I could have skipped…

• Transcription by Kate Atkinson – It still pains me that I didn’t like Atkinson’s latest historical fiction. Maybe the fact that I’d looked forward to it for so long intensified my disappointment. (my review)
• The Caregiver by Samuel Park – While Park’s story had some great parts to it, the overall story just didn’t grab me and I found myself falling into too much skimming. (my review)

DNF

• Ordinary People by Diana Evans – I just could not get interested in any of the characters in this book and gave up after 15%.

Top Blog Posts

• I posted my Fall Preview 2018 toward the end of August and it was my top blog post for that month AND September. It’s so fun to get excited about upcoming books.
• This month two of the books I really enjoyed came from a list of older books that I’d missed, so it’s easy to see why Hidden Gems from the Last Five Years was so well received. Our TBR lists are never full.
• Yes, The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah is once again the most viewed of my book reviews this month. It has to be coming up on some search criteria. It was only okay for me. Definitely not a top ten book.

{From the Book Blogging World}

Favorite Reviews & Recommendations

Links take you to these wonderful reviews…

• You know I’m a big fan of Circe and The Song of Achilles, so reading Ottavia’s Author Spotlight Medeline Miller was a definite treat.
• Catherine from The Gilmore Guide to Books has a way with words that always stuns me and she’s also an expert at ferreting out books most of us miss. Check out her five star review of The Pasha of Cuisine by Saygin Ersin and add to your TBR list.
• Susan at The Cue Card reviewed The Tennis Partner, Elmet and There There in her September Mini-Reviews. Now I want to read ALL of them.
• I tend to like WWII books, but somehow I’d missed News of Our Loved Ones by Abigail DeWitt. A terrific review from Andrea at Born and Read in Chicago put it on my radar.
• I used to read Diane Chamberlain books, but somehow over the years got away from them. Last week’s review of The Dream Daughter from Renee at It’s Book Talk has me wondering why?
• Beth at Beth Fish Reads has become one of my go to sources for audiobook recommendations. From one of her Stacked-Up Book Thoughts posts Whiskey When We’re Dry has particularly caught my attention.

Fun & Useful Blog Posts

So many great posts on book related topics were delivered in September. Here are a few that really inspired!

• Sarah from Sarah’s Bookshelves is a master at putting together themed lists. Two I loved in September were 16 Character Driven Novels I Couldn’t Put Down and a fantastic selection in The “Women Who Get Women” Authors Club.
• What Makes a Book Quotable? Katie from Doing Dewey considered that and more in an early September discussion post.
• I tend to avoid books on aging. They hit close to home as we’re needing to help my mom more and more and as I get older, myself. Luckily, Allison at Mind Joggle has no such concerns and compiled a thorough list of 12 Books About Aging and End of Life. It’s no surprise to me that I’ve only read two of them.
• Lots of bloggers put out wonderful lists of upcoming books, and among those I appreciate most comes from Ottavia at Novels and Nonfiction. I love her monthly mix of upcoming fiction and nonfiction releases. Check out her 10 October 2018 Book Releases I’m Excited About.
• And finally from The Washington Post, a fall book list that had quite a few books on it I saw nowhere else, What Books to Read this Fall.

That’s a wrap! How was your September?

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