Today’s post covers the second half of the books I read in September 2022. I shared the first half of the books I read here. My top books of the month can be found here. I will be linking up with Lauren’s book link up, My Month Is Booked, on Tuesday! The Amazon links to the books I’ve read are affiliate links and if you use them and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. If you’ve read any of these books or are interested in them, I’d love to hear about it in the comments!
Title: The Make-Up Test
Author: Jenny L. Howe
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin, 9/13/22
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 3 Stars
This was yet another 2nd chance romance. There are so many of these lately. Allison and Colin are academic rivals. I felt a little burnt out on rom coms while reading this one!
“Allison Avery loves to win. After acing every academic challenge she’s come up against, she’s finally been accepted into her dream Ph.D. program at Claymore University, studying medieval literature under a professor she’s admired for years. Sure, grad school isn’t easy―the classes are intense, her best friend is drifting away, and her students would rather pull all-nighters than discuss The Knight’s Tale―but she’s got this. Until she discovers her ex-boyfriend has also been accepted. Colin Benjamin might be the only person who loves winning more than Allison does, and when they’re both assigned to TA for the same professor, the game is on. What starts as a personal battle of wits (and lit) turns into all-out war when their professor announces a career-changing research trip opportunity―with one spot to fill. Competing with Colin is as natural as breathing, and after he shattered her heart two years ago, Allison refuses to let him come out on top. But when a family emergency and a late-night road trip―plus a very sexy game of Scrabble―throw them together for a weekend, she starts to wonder if they could be stronger on the same team. And if they fall for each other all over again, Allison will have to choose between a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and what could be a twice-in-a-lifetime love.”
I hated Colin. He constantly would take Allison’s successes and use them as his own, leaving her to try to make him feel better about himself. I didn’t think she should have given him a 2nd chance much less a 3rd. I did appreciate that Allison was plus sized and happy with her body.
Title: The Epic Story of Every Living Thing
Author: Deb Caletti
Genre: YA Contemporary
Publisher: Labyrinth Road, 9/13/22
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
This YA novel takes place in 2021 in a semi post Covid world. Harper is a social media obsessed teen who is addicted to her phone. She scrolls social media when she feels anxious, which happens more since Covid started. On social media she discovers her 1/2 siblings and she decides to travel with them to Hawaii to meet their sperm donor father.
“Harper Proulx has lived her whole life with unanswered questions about her anonymous sperm donor father. She’s convinced that without knowing him, she can’t know herself. When a chance Instagram post connects Harper to a half sibling, that connection yields many more and ultimately leads Harper to uncover her father’s identity. So, fresh from a painful breakup and still reeling with anxiety that reached a lifetime high during the pandemic, Harper joins her newfound half siblings on a voyage to Hawaii to face their father. The events of that summer, and the man they discover—a charismatic deep-sea diver obsessed with solving the mystery of a fragile sunken shipwreck—will force Harper to face some even bigger questions: Who is she? Is she her DNA, her experiences, her successes, her failures? Is she the things she loves—or the things she hates? Who she is in dark times? Who she might become after them?”
On the trip, Harper learns to be brave and to live in the moment. A parallel story of a woman who captained a ship introduces each chapter and scuba and sea life are a large part of the story. I liked how Harper overcame her fears and became less attached to her phone.
Title: The Weird Sisters
Author: Eleanor Brown
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Penguin Audio, 1/20/11
Source: Library Audio App
Why I Read It: Book Club
My Rating: 3 Stars
We chose The Weird Sisters for our book club choice for our next month. Unfortunately, I didn’t love the book. It seemed just a bit weird! It is about three sisters whose father is Shakespeare obsessed who all return home when their mother becomes sick.
“Three sisters have returned to their childhood home, reuniting the eccentric Andreas family. Here, books are a passion (there is no problem a library card can’t solve) and TV is something other people watch. Their father—a professor of Shakespeare who speaks almost exclusively in verse—named them after the Bard’s heroines. It’s a lot to live up to. The sisters each have a hard time communicating with their parents and their lovers, but especially with one another. What can the shy homebody eldest sister, the fast-living middle child, and the bohemian youngest sibling have in common? Only that none has found life to be what was expected; and now, faced with their parents’ frailty and their own personal disappointments, not even a book can solve what ails them…”
The sisters annoyed me because they acted much younger than they were meant to be. I believe this is how the story was supposed to be, showing how returning home makes us all a little immature. But I guess I just didn’t mesh with this story or the characters.
Title: How To Lose Weight For The Last Time
Author: Katrina Ubell
Genre: Self Help
Publisher: Hachette Audio, 9/20/22
Source: Publisher Audio App
Why I Read It: Sounded interesting
My Rating: 4 Stars
The audio for this book was very interesting and engaging. The author is a podcast host and narrated the book. I enjoyed the audio and the ability to access resources on the author’s website. This book is about brain-based weight loss and emotional eating. The author recommends only eating when hungry and only eating until you are full, with advice on how to determine these levels.
“As a pediatrician, Katrina Ubell, MD, always struggled with her weight–she was either 40 pounds overweight, or struggling to lose that weight. Although she’d regularly counsel parents on the importance of keeping their kids healthy and fostering good eating habits, Dr. Ubell, as a busy professional, was never able to do the same for herself. Like everyone else, she tried many different diets and programs, but would always regain the weight. In 2015, Dr. Ubell “cracked the code” for making weight loss permanent, and developed a program targeted at busy physicians like herself who often de-prioritize their own wellness. As a weight loss coach, Dr. Ubell has helped over 1,000 busy physicians and professionals find and stay at a healthy weight with her brain-based program, and is now ready to bring this program to the general public. Dr. Ubell’s program doesn’t involve any unrealistic diets, plans, special foods, supplements, or even rigorous exercise protocols; instead, she uses a deep understanding of the brain and behavior patterns to get results. Through her work, she has been able to uncover and speak into the universal obstacles that stand in our way of losing and keeping off weight.”
The author recommends creating your own protocol for your diet, planning everything in advance, and journaling. It almost sounds too easy – but wait – you cannot eat sugar or flour. So even though you make your own list of the foods you can eat, they still have to be foods that are healthy enough to get you to actually lose weight. I’m still working on only eating when hungry – but I haven’t completely given up sugar and flour yet!
Title: The Real Mrs. Tobias
Author: Sally Koslow
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Harper, 9/13/22
Source: Bibliolifestyle Book Tour
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 3.5 Stars (Rounded down to 3)
This is a generational story told through the women who married Tobias men. The matriarch of the family is Veronika, who is married to David. Their son is Jake, who is married to Mel. Mel is a therapist (who is not great at her job) They have twins, one of whom is Micah, who is married to Birdie. When Micah gets into some trouble, the family bonds and divides over what he should do. At the same time, David is showing signs of dementia, and this also brings the family both together and apart.
“It’s 2015 in New York City, and three women all known as Mrs. Tobias—Veronika, the matriarch, her daughter-in-law Mel, and Mel’s daughter-in-law Birdie—are trying to navigate personal difficulties, some of which are with one another.Veronika and Mel, despite having little in common, are both psychotherapists who are more skilled at helping other people than solving their own problems. Birdie, still dealing with the culture shock of moving to New York City and marrying into the Tobias clan, is pushed to her limit when her husband gets into trouble. No amount of badgering from his steely grandmother, smart-mouthed mother, or disillusioned wife can convince him to own up to what he’s done. Overwhelmed, Birdie bolts—along with the couple’s young daughter—to her Midwestern hometown, hoping that space, warmth and wisdom from her own feisty grandmother will help her find a path forward. And though Birdie begins to find comfort in unexpected places—a local bookstore and the arms of her old boyfriend—her absence stirs up long simmering troubles back home forcing the Tobiases to reconsider their relationships to each other, and ultimately, what it means to be a family. Will the three Tobias-women-by-marriage ever find themselves—and a way back to one another? A timely look at how women hold families together.”
The family has Jewish roots and I felt there was some humor that was about Jewish traditions that could be taken the wrong way by those who don’t understand Jewish humor. I didn’t really love the family members overall!
Title: Opening My Eyes Under Water
Author: Ashley Woodfolk
Genre: Memoir in Essays, YA
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends, 9/23/22
Source: Storygram Book Tour
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
I have read Ashley Woodfolk’s novels and of course I love and admire Michelle Obama, so I was very interested in the concept of this book. Inspired by the life and quotations of former first lady Michelle Obama, Opening My Eyes Underwater is a collection of essays including essays about bullying, heartbreak, racism, and confidence.
“Essays of bullying, heartbreak, racism, and confidence, Ashley taps into her own past and shares those stories that made her who she is today as she seamlessly weaves in parallel experiences that both she and Mrs. Obama have faced in their separate childhoods as well as their adult lives. Open, searing, and honest, these are stories readers will feel seen with. Readers who are growing and learning as they move forward through life’s triumphs and pitfalls will undoubtedly gravitate to and find comfort within its pages.”
This book is geared towards the YA reader with the promise that you are valuable and you are not alone. She says “We’re never truly alone, if only we have the patience to listen to the stories of others, and the courage to share our own.” This was a quick and inspiring read that will appeal to teens and adults alike.
Title: All American Boys
Author: Jason Reynolds & Brendan Kiely
Genre: YA Contemporary
Publisher: Atheneum / Caitlyn Dlouhy Books, 9/29/15
Source: Purchased
Why I Read It: Was waiting on my shelf / Banned Books Week
My Rating: 4 Stars
I had purchased this book about two years ago and never got around to reading it. I thought Banned Books Week would be the right time to read it, as this book has been banned / challenged. It is about Rashad, who was beaten up by Paul, a police officer.
“A bag of chips. That’s all sixteen-year-old Rashad is looking for at the corner bodega. What he finds instead is a fist-happy cop, Paul Galluzzo, who mistakes Rashad for a shoplifter, mistakes Rashad’s pleadings that he’s stolen nothing for belligerence, mistakes Rashad’s resistance to leave the bodega as resisting arrest, mistakes Rashad’s every flinch at every punch the cop throws as further resistance and refusal to STAY STILL as ordered. But how can you stay still when someone is pounding your face into the concrete pavement? There were witnesses: Quinn Collins—a varsity basketball player and Rashad’s classmate who has been raised by Paul since his own father died in Afghanistan—and a video camera. Soon the beating is all over the news and Paul is getting threatened with accusations of prejudice and racial brutality. Quinn refuses to believe that the man who has basically been his savior could possibly be guilty. But then Rashad is absent. And absent again. And again. And the basketball team—half of whom are Rashad’s best friends—start to take sides. As does the school. And the town. Simmering tensions threaten to explode as Rashad and Quinn are forced to face decisions and consequences they had never considered before.”
Rashad was obviously innocent of shoplifting and Paul was obviously out of line with how intensely he beat up Rashad. The main dilemma of the story is for Quinn, who struggles as to whether he should come forward with what he saw. I can almost understand why this book has been challenged, because it doesn’t provide a POV for Paul and is not nuanced – Paul was obviously in the wrong. I think this book would be good for young readers to learn about standing up for what is right.
Title: Well, That Was Unexpected
Author: Jesse Q Sutanto
Genre: YA Contemporary
Publisher: Delacorte, 9/27/22
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
This was a cute YA rom com about Sharlot and George whose parents catch them in separate compromising positions and end up chatting online – each pretending to be their respective child.
“After Sharlot Citra’s mother catches her in a compromising position, she finds herself whisked away from LA to her mother’s native Indonesia. It’ll be exactly what they both need. Or so her mother thinks. When George Clooney Tanuwijaya’s father (who is obsessed with American celebrities) fears he no longer understands how to get through to his son, he decides to take matters into his own hands. To ensure that their children find the right kind of romantic partner, Sharlot’s mother and George’s father do what any ‘good’ parent would do: they strike up a conversation online, pretending to be their children. When the kids find out about their parents’ actions, they’re horrified. Not even a trip to one of the most romantic places on earth could possibly make Sharlot and George fall for each other. But as the layers peel back and the person they thought they knew from online is revealed, the truth becomes more complicated. As unlikely as it may seem, did their parents manage to find their true match after all?”
George lives in Indonesia with his dad and Sharlot and her mom head there for the summer and the two meet each other. Much fun ensues! And of course, I now want to visit Bali.
Title: The Kiss Curse
Author: Erin Sterling
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Harper Audio, 9/20/22
Source: Libro.fm
Why I Read It: TBR
My Rating: 4 Stars
I really enjoyed The Ex Hex last year and was excited to read this one, which is a sequel that can be read on it’s own as well. It is about Gwyn, who is Vivi’s cousin, and Wells, who is Rhys’s brother.
“Gwyn Jones is perfectly happy with her life in Graves Glen. She, her mom, and her cousin have formed a new and powerful coven; she’s running a successful witchcraft shop, Something Wicked; and she’s started mentoring some of the younger witches in town. As Halloween approaches, there’s only one problem—Llewellyn ‘Wells’ Penhallow. Wells has come to Graves Glen to re-establish his family’s connection to the town they founded as well as to make a new life for himself after years of being the dutiful son in Wales. When he opens up a shop of his own, Penhallow’s, just across the street from Something Wicked, he quickly learns he’s gotten more than he bargained for in going up against Gwyn. When their professional competition leads to a very personal—and very hot—kiss, both Wells and Gwyn are determined to stay away from each other, convinced the kiss was just a magical fluke. But when a mysterious new coven of witches come to town and Gwyn’s powers begin fading, she and Wells must work together to figure out just what these new witches want and how to restore Gwyn’s magic before it’s too late.”
Although I didn’t love this one as much as I loved The Ex Hex, I did enjoy the return to Graves Glen, the witchy atmosphere, and the relationship between Gwyn and Wells, which was somewhat of enemies to lovers. This is a cute rom com for the fall season!
Title: Killers of a Certain Age
Author: Deanna Raybourne
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Berkley, 9/6/22
Source: Book of the Month
Why I Read It: This month’s Book of the Month Choice
My Rating: 3 Stars
This book is well loved, but it is my second Book of the Month in a row that I was not a fan of! I’m not sure why, but I just couldn’t bring myself to care about the 4 women in this book – all of whom were the same and I could not tell apart.
“Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie have worked for the Museum, an elite network of assassins, for forty years. Now their talents are considered old-school and no one appreciates what they have to offer in an age that relies more on technology than people skills. When the foursome is sent on an all-expenses paid vacation to mark their retirement, they are targeted by one of their own. Only the Board, the top-level members of the Museum, can order the termination of field agents, and the women realize they’ve been marked for death. Now to get out alive they have to turn against their own organization, relying on experience and each other to get the job done, knowing that working together is the secret to their survival. They’re about to teach the Board what it really means to be a woman—and a killer—of a certain age.”
I liked reading about some of their earlier hits on evil people such as Nazis, that were included in flashbacks. Their present day search for those who were targeting them didn’t interest me much at all. Like I said, this has been well loved, so it may be just me who wasn’t a fan!
Title: Other Ever Afters
Author: Melanie Gillman
Genre: YA Graphic Novel
Publisher: Random House Graphic, 9/20/22
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
I didn’t realize until I picked this up that it was comics / graphic, and therefore it was a very quick read – like less than half an hour of reading! It includes 7 original fairy tales in which giants are friendly, queer romance is allowed, and the prince doesn’t always get the princess.
“What if the giant who abducted you was actually thoughtful and kind? What if you didn’t want to marry your handsome, popular, but cold-inside suitor? What if your one true love has all the responsibilities that come with running a kingdom? Award-winning author Melanie Gillman’s phenomenal colored-pencil art creates another ‘ever after’ for the characters who are most worthy of it.”
I enjoyed the art style which used colored pencils, and I liked “The People’s Forest” story the best. These tales actually make you think, and I’m not sure I understood them all! It was fun for a quick read.
Title: The Door of No Return
Author: Kwame Alexander
Genre: Middle Grade Historical Fiction
Publisher: Hachette Audio, 9/27/22
Source: Publisher Audio
Why I Read It: Enjoyed his writing in the past
My Rating: 4 Stars
This was a short and powerful book in verse which I listened to on audio. I think I may have gotten even more out of it if I’d had the print version to make sure I was not missing any of the story. It is about Kofi, who lives in Upper Kwanta with his family, until he is taken through the door of no return.
“11-year-old Kofi Offin dreams of water. Its mysterious, immersive quality. The rich, earthy scent of the current. The clearness, its urgent whisper that beckons with promises and secrets…Kofi has heard the call on the banks of Upper Kwanta, in the village where he lives. He loves these things above all else: his family, the fireside tales of his father’s father, a girl named Ama, and, of course, swimming. Some say he moves like a minnow, not just an ordinary boy so he’s hoping to finally prove himself in front of Ama and his friends in a swimming contest against his older, stronger cousin. But before this can take place, a festival comes to the villages of Upper and Lower Kwanta and Kofi’s brother is chosen to represent Upper Kwanta in the wrestling contest. Encircled by cheering spectators and sounding drums, the two wrestlers from different villages kneel, ready to fight. You are only fine, until you are not. The match is over before it has barely begun, when the unthinkable–a sudden death–occurs…The river does not care how grown you are. As his world turns upside down, Kofi soon ends up in a fight for his life. What happens next will send him on a harrowing journey across land and sea, and away from everything he loves.”
Interspersed with Kofi’s story are stories from the Asante Kingdom. Again, I think the print version would have been helpful, as I found some of the story hard to understand. It is meant for middle graders, so I should have been able to absorb it easily!
Title: Bright
Author: Brigit Young
Genre: Middle Grade Contemporary
Publisher: Roaring Book Press, 7/5/22
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
This book came to me unexpectedly and I loved the cover and the description, so I picked it up! This was a sweet middle grade story about Marianne, who struggles academically in school. She does not have any learning disabilities, but just has trouble understanding concepts, especially in math.
“Marianne Blume knows she’s one of the stupid kids. After years of trying and trying and feeling like she’s always failing, she has mastered the art of turning off her brain whenever questions or lectures arise. She gets by in school on a combination of luck, deflection, and charisma―that is, until she lands in the classroom of Mr. Garcia. To avoid flunking Mr. Garcia’s class, Marianne joins her school’s Quiz Quest team, hoping the move will ingratiate her to him, the team’s coach. Can Marianne learn to be smart if she puts her mind to it? And what does it really mean to be ‘bright,’ anyway?”
After joining the quiz team, Marianne begins to learn study skills with the help of her new friends. She also learns how to be a better friend and that she likes helping people. This story stresses that you don’t need to get all A’s or be a perfect student to be smart, or bright. I really enjoyed this one!
There you have it, the rest of my September reading! This post included 13 of the books I read in September. Of these books, 9 were print and 4 were audio books. Genres included contemporary, rom com, thriller, non-fiction, mystery, and historical. Five were YA and two were middle grade.
Have you read any of these books or do you want to? What have you been reading lately?
