So many great books this year, but The Incandescent was my favorite.

#bookbracket2025 @cseydel

#bookspin: Island at the Edge of the World by Mike Pitts

#doublebookspin: Fundamentals of Being a Good Girl by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone

#bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

A quick #auldlangspine about me
@monalyisha @CSeydel

1. My name is Sarah

2. My husband and I met in Kansas, but now we live in Northwest Arkansas closer to where I grew up

3. We have two boys (3 and 1)

4. I work as a software engineer

5. Other than reading, my hobbies are knitting, crocheting, and journaling

6. I have one dog and two cats, all seniors now. The kitten in the photo is one of @rachelsbrittain's foster kittens

5/5

Sameera needs to save her career until she meets Tom, a cute chef with a successful business man for a best friend. He'll introduce Sameera if she'll pretend to date him to help his cooking videos get more views. It's a perfect plan, until their families find out and decide to celebrate a joint Christmas in Alaska, a first for Sameera's Muslim family.

I thought this was the perfect holiday rom-com.

#netgalley

4/5

Piper has a crush on her neighbor, who she's never even met. She also has a crush on the very attractive man who talks to her while she has a panic attack, not realizing that he's her neighbor. Their paths collide on Christmas Eve and they get a chance to learn if there's something between them.

#netgalley

3.5/5

Juliana and Eric are pretending to still be engaged while spending Christmas with Juliana's family, but as they fake their relationship, they start to see the possibility that their differences are something they can work through, not a deal-breaker.

#netgalley

3/5

Goldie is the maid of honor in her brother's Christmas wedding, and the best man if not only her high school crush, but a successful actor. When they both confess that they had crushes on each other when they were young after the Christmas Eve rehearsal dinner, they have an opportunity to see if they have a chance together.

#netgalley

4/5

Miriam isn't looking forward to Hanukkah with her family who always overlooks her, but a chance encounter with her seatmate on the airplane, leaves Miriam with a fake boyfriend as a buffer for her family over the eight nights. But as she sees more of who Cal is, she isn't sure she wants their relationship to end after spending Christmas Eve and Christmas with his family.

#netgalley

4/5

Hera can't trust Zeus, but her attraction to her husband is as strong as her hatred of him even as the city falls around them.

I loved the interludes from Hermes's perspective. It added a lot more understanding of her perspective, and I feel much more excited to see how the series will conclude with her story in Shattered Gods. Also, the acknowledgements left me stressed about what's going to happen in Shattered Gods.

#netgalley

4/5

With a new theory of where the Heirarch's Well may be, Kai and his allies work to ensure that no new Heirarch will be created. In the past, Kai must work to bring the dust witches into Bashasa's army as they continue their fight to defeat the Heirarchs.

I love the ways the two story entangle. We know how the war ends, but the details of what truly happened are slowly revealed through both the past and present story lines.

#netgalley

I chose Britt-Marie was Here by Fredrik Backman as my November pick and Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz as my second wild card.

#readingbracket2025 @cseydel

November was a good reading month for me.

#bookspin #doublebookspin #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

I'm so excited for my #auldlangspine list from @CSeydel. The only book on the list I've already read is My Friends by Fredrick Backman.

I'm going to prioritize reading In Cold Blood, Tress of the Emerald Sea, We Solve Murders, Mickey7, and The Stardust Grail in January, but there are so many other interesting books on this list that I'll hopefully manage to read at some point!

Thanks @monalyisha for organizing!

4/5

Violet may have been a villain, but when evil adopted father dies, she has an opportunity to start over, by opening a florist shop in the town next to the castle she used to live in. But a power vacuum is tempting to other villains, and Violet may find it harder to be good than she expected.

I really enjoyed this cozy fantasy about people looking for a second chance.

#netgalley

December #bookspinbingo

#bookspin: Tender Cruelty by Katee Robert
#doublebookspin: Yours for the Season by Uzma Jalaluddin

@TheAromaofBooks

e-book: Violet Thistlewaite is not a Villain Anymore by Emily Krempholtz

audiobook: Queen Demon by Martha Wells

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

4/5

I thought this was both a fun retelling of Aztec mythology from the perspective of Xolotl, as well as a good introduction to some of the Aztec gods and mythology for middle grade readers. I really liked the part where Xolo sees himself in the dogs he helped create and sees that his flaws aren't as bad as he thought.

#netgalley

4.5/5

Simran is a witch. Vina is a knight. Both are trapped in a story that will inevitable lead to their deaths and then the cycle will repeat again. But something is hunting down and killing stories, and Simran and Vina must work together to find out what is happening if they hope to stay alive long enough to have a chance at changing their own story.

#netgalley

5/5

After a lifetime of caring for her home and family, Britt-Marie needs a job. She ends up in a small town in financial trouble, Britt-Marie ends up as the caretaker for a community recreation center that the local government forgot to shut down. Despite her dislike of soccer, she also becomes the soccer coach for the local kids.

Britt-Marie and the community change once another as they begin to let each other in.

#goodreadsgiveaway

3/5

Rottgor has spent centuries of his reanimated life as a Death Knight, but now he's retired and can make the most of his time to fulfill the dreams he had before his undeath. He decides to open a restaurant and to build a new life and new community for himself.

I really liked the concept of this book, but there were so many characters and so many things going on, that I found it difficult to get very invested in the characters.

#netgalley

4.5/5
Theo has just begun to adjust to her life as a fairy's familiar, when she's pulled into a thousand year old mystery that she must solve or put her own life into danger. Despite her un-likeable-ness, Theo must rely on her friends, to get to the bottom of who assassinated the fairy royal family.

This was another great adventure for Theo. I love Theo as a character, and I thought this was a really satisfying conclusion to her story.
#netgalley

4/5

Fern's life is in a rut, so she moves to Thune to relocate her bookshop next to her long-time friend, Viv. But when that fails to change how Fern feels, she ends up in the back of a legendary adventurer's wagon and ends up on a journey of her own.

I enjoyed the addition to the lore of this world, particularly the section about the penitents. The ending wasn't what I expected, but I hope that it can continue to be expand on.

#netgalley

Favorite October read: When Devils Sing by Xan Kaur

#readingbracket2025 @CSeydel

#bookspin: M.A.Y.A. by Nina Saxena

#doublebookspin: How to Survive a Fairy Bargain by Laura Mayo

#bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

I can't believe I more than filled in my October #bookspinbingo. Definitely my best reading month of the year.

#bookspin #doublebookspin #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

4.5/5

It's 2030, and while segregation is still the law of the land, Annabeth has a good job at the time travel company CRONUS. Until she begins to remember a past that never happened, and learns that she isn't the only one.

#netgalley

2.5/5

Five monstrous roommates share a home they were drawn to when a professor successfully invented time travel.

I really liked the premise of a group of monsters living together to afford the real estate tax in Santa Monica, and I really liked the characters, but overall I didn't understand the story.

#netgalley

4/5

Esther can only remember a couple of years, but that's all anyone can remember, so she doesn't mind. Then she goes to the husband archive and ends up with a husband who tries to teach her what books are, and eventually what happened to the world he lived in.

I thought this was a very different take on time travel, but I thought it was a very interesting story as I tried to figure out what was going on.

#netgalley

4/5

Russ is a traveling salesman who sells opportunities by time traveling to the near past, but he's much rather be working in futures until he understands his presence. This was a really devastating short story about time and what matters in life that had me crying.

#netgalley

3.5/5

Jess finds an injured boy alone in the woods and takes him into her home, but he seems to know things he couldn't possibly know. This was a very creepy and unsettling read.

#netgalley #hauntedshelf #screamteam #AllThingsApple #OneSnackToRuleThemAll

4.5/5

I really liked this concept of time travel where travelers can only return to their time after 3 days, 9 months, or 27 years in the past. I also loved that it was told by the time travel technician running the machine. It was a quick and fun sci-fi story.

#netgalley #hauntedshelf #screamteam #AllThingsApple #OneSnackToRuleThemAll

5/5

I have been reading this series for a few years now, and this is the first year where I loved almost every essay in the collection. There were essays where I learned things, essays that made me tear up, and essays that left me angry and horrified. It was a fascinating collection that I enjoyed reading.

#netgalley #hauntedshelf #screamteam #AllThingsApple #OneSnackToRuleThemAll

4/5

Rosemary's horror novel is being turned into a movie, which should be perfect, but instead she's annoyed they've cast action star Ellis as lead. Despite her attraction to him, she's sure he's all wrong for the role.

I thought the gothic horror movie set was a really fun setting for a romance novel. I really enjoyed Ellis and Rosemary's chemistry, and I thought the ghosts were a nice addition to the story.

#netgalley

3.5/5

Last summer, all of Nan's friends disappeared and Nan was left behind, but on the day of their memorial, Luce re-appears, and Nan knows whatever reappeared can't be the real Luce, since Nan's the one who killed all three girls.

Nan is an unreliable narrator, and I enjoyed piecing what was going on through her perspective. I also thought it was really interesting to read a thriller from the perspective of the killer.

#netgalley

e-book: Love at First Fright by Nadia El-Fassi
audiobook: Kill Creatures by Rory Power

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

6 days left in October, and I feel like if I really focus on reading, I might fully complete my #bookspinbingo this month.

3/5

Dina was hexed so that anyone who loves her will be hurt, and she's sworn to avoid love to protect those around her. But then Scott starts showing up everywhere in her life, and it's impossible not to fall for him.

I had a little trouble getting into the characters are first, but I loved how Dina's relationship with her mother was depicted, and I thought the ending of the hex was very satisfying.

#netgalley

4/5

Ten years ago, Zelda left her chaotic life as a witch behind, as well as her vampire friends who encouraged her pranks. But now, she's having trouble managing her magic and a vampire with amnesia, Peter, has ended up on her doorstep. Zelda decides a road trip will give her space to get her magic back under control, and help Peter regain his memories, but who Peter was before he lost his memories may come to haunt them both.

#netgalley

5/5

Every 13 years, in Carrion, GA the cicadas rise up from the ground and with them come the mysterious deaths on Lake Clearwater. Four teenagers are pulled into the mystery when a boy they all are connected to goes missing, and they learn about the devils that return to Carrion every thirteen years.

This was a great southern gothic with language that really transported me to Georgia.

#netgalley

audiobook: When Devils Sing by Xan Kaur
ebook: Best Hex Ever by Nadia El-Fassi
print: Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

4.5/5

Easton is in Appalachia at the request of their friend Dr. Denton to look into a mysterious disappearance. They are once again brought into a situation something beyond human understanding is happening.

I loved reading another story in this series, and I was glad to see the return of Dr. Denton. The horror in this series always feels very grounded, despite being of otherworldly origin, and I continue to really enjoy it.

4.5/5

Ezra has since ghosts since he was a child, which made living next door to his family's funeral home incredibly difficult. Now he's seeing the ghost of his new neighbor's husband everywhere, but neither the ghost nor Ezra's life is following the rules he's come to expect.

I really enjoyed this book. It was more about grief, family, and community than about the ghosts, but I thought the ghosts brought a good element to the book.

4/5

Mateo's barely a witch, but he needs money to get the demon his mother trapped in his body exorcised. Topher hires him to undo the curse that causes people around Topher to experience deadly bad luck. Mateo gets pulled into a dangerous, magical mystery.

I really loved Mateo and all that was slowly revealed throughout the book about his past and his mother. I enjoyed the slow burn romance between Mateo and Topher.

4/5

Kinsey, the leader of an isolated research team in the desert, find a specimen and bring it inside before a deadly sandstorm hits. They are quickly infected by the virus it carried, and Kinsey's sexual desires get mixed up with the horror the virus unleashes on her team.

This is such a creepy and strange book, I almost don't know how to rate it, but I also couldn't put it down.

#netgallley #hauntedshelf #screamteam #AllThingsApple

4/5

Luna crashes her car into an inn's sign during a snow storm. When she goes inside, she finds that the inn is run by an extremely grump werewolf, Oliver. She also ends up magically bonded to him and stuck in the town of Claw Haven until the snow melts and they can retrieve the ingredients to undo the bond.

#netgalley #hauntedshelf #screamteam #AllThingsApple

3/5

A sleep paralysis demon is very bad at her job. I thought there were some interesting elements to this book, but I think overall I preferred the books in the series that had more of a “scary“ element at the beginning of the story.

#hauntedshelf #screamteam #AllThingsApple

3/5

I liked this more than Spicy Little Curses, but of all the books in the Scared Sexy collection, this had the least going on. It was interesting to read a paranormal romance from Christina Lauren, since I've only ever read their contemporary romances.

#hauntedshelf #screamteam #AllThingsApple

4/5

Edgar lives in constant terror of the ghosts he sees, but after meeting Jamie, he's motivated to start to examine his life and live in a way that allows him to be in a relationship.

This book was much more about anxiety, family, and relationships than ghosts, but I really enjoyed how the paranormal elements were able to create a cozy story.

#netgalley #hauntedshelf #screamteam #AllThingsApple

This sci-fi horror is set an a planet covered in complete darkness with radio signals screamingly loud. Two humans find themselves stranded on the planet in a dire situation as they learn about the planet, and the planet learns about them.

An atmospheric #Hauntedshelf rec

#screamteam @imperfectcj

A couple of Unhinged #Hauntedshelf recommendations. These are both weird horror that involve a cloistered setting. I liked the Starving Saints more than The Unworthy, but they're both horrifying and strange reads.

@imperfectcj #screamteam