It’s time for my first half of October 2026 book review post! I am sharing what I read in October so far, although I am skipping my 5 star reads to share later in the month. 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! To see all of these links at once, visit my storefront!
Title: The Year of Living Constitutionally
Author: AJ Jacobs
Genre: Non Fiction
Publisher: Crown, 5/7/24
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
After reading and enjoying The Puzzler by AJ Jacobs earlier this year, I was hopeful that The Year of Living Constitutionally would be just as entertaining. In this one, AJ Jacobs decides to live according to the Constitution as it was written. While doing so, he came to question whether the Constitution was meant to be interpreted literally or with adaptations.
“A.J. Jacobs learned the hard way that donning a tricorne hat and marching around Manhattan with a 1700s musket will earn you a lot of strange looks. In the wake of several controversial rulings by the Supreme Court and the on-going debate about how the Constitution should be interpreted, Jacobs set out to understand what it means to live by the Constitution. In The Year of Living Constitutionally, A.J. Jacobs tries to get inside the minds of the Founding Fathers by living as closely as possible to the original meaning of the Constitution. He asserts his right to free speech by writing his opinions on parchment with a quill and handing them out to strangers in Times Square. He consents to quartering a soldier, as is his Third Amendment right. He turns his home into a traditional 1790s household by lighting candles instead of using electricity, boiling mutton, and—because women were not allowed to sign contracts— feebly attempting to take over his wife’s day job, which involves a lot of contract negotiations. The book blends unforgettable adventures—delivering a handwritten petition to Congress, applying for a Letter of Marque to become a legal pirate for the government, and battling redcoats as part of a Revolutionary War reenactment group—with dozens of interviews from constitutional experts from both sides. Jacobs dives deep into originalism and living constitutionalism, the two rival ways of interpreting the document. Much like he did with the Bible in The Year of Living Biblically, Jacobs provides a crash course on our Constitution as he experiences the benefits and perils of living like it’s the 1790s. He relishes, for instance, the slow thinking of the era, free from social media alerts. But also discovers the progress we’ve made since 1789 when married women couldn’t own property. Now more than ever, Americans need to understand the meaning and value of the Constitution. As politicians and Supreme Court Justices wage a high-stakes battle over how literally we should interpret the Constitution, A.J. Jacobs provides an entertaining yet illuminating look into how this storied document fits into our democracy today.”
This book was educational and funny. I definitely learned from it, and enjoyed reading about the things the author did to live like a Founding Father. One of my favorite things that the author did was encouraging others to bake election cakes, to hand out to voters on Election Day. I will say that this book leans Democrat, so you won’t like it if those views offend you!
Title: People Watching in the Desert
Author: Cali Adeline
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Harper, 7/14/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
People Watching in the Desert by Cali Adeline is about Sonny, a socially awkward 25 year old who goes to a spa retreat in Arizona after coming into a sum of money. She spends time watching the other guests prior to actually getting to know them.
“Sonny Magee has spent most of her life alone, finding comfort in quiet solitude and scribbling in the private pages of her notebook. She lost her loving but troubled mother in childhood and was raised by an indifferent, sometimes cruel grandmother who left her scarred and naïve about life. When Sonny mysteriously comes into a large sum of money, she finds herself in Arizona, at the luxury Sanctuary Resort & Spa. Out of her element and her comfort zone, she struggles with the spa’s doting staff and the unfamiliar wealth and constant small talk of her fellow guests. Forced proximity introduces her to a cadre of eccentrics, and something akin to romance blossoms with a resort employee. Yet Sonny still feels most at peace when people watching from the margins, headphones on and scrawling in her notebook. But when a freak accident disturbs Sanctuary’s carefully curated tranquility, a shocking twist crumbles Sonny’s inner world, and she finds herself unexpectedly—and maybe even pleasantly—surprised by the people around her.”
I thought I would like this one a bit more than I did, although it did keep me entertained. I am not sure if part of it was supposed to be a twist, but I knew what was happening the whole time. I also expected Sonny to be older than she actually was.
Title: We Were Never Here
Author: Andrea Bartz
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Random House Audio, 8/3/21
Source: Publisher – Print, Library – Audio
Why I Read It: Backlist
My Rating: 4 Stars
My 26 in ’26 bonus pick for Thriller was We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz. I listened to it and found it difficult to stop listening! It was about Emily and her toxic best friend Kristen, who helps Emily kill a man who assaulted her, but now wants Emily to help her do the same to another man.
“Emily is having the time of her life—she’s in the mountains of Chile with her best friend, Kristen, on their annual reunion trip, and the women are feeling closer than ever. But on the last night of the trip, Emily enters their hotel suite to find blood and broken glass on the floor. Kristen says the cute backpacker she brought back to their room attacked her, and she had no choice but to kill him in self-defense. Even more shocking: The scene is horrifyingly similar to last year’s trip, when another backpacker wound up dead. Emily can’t believe it’s happened again—can lightning really strike twice? Back home in Wisconsin, Emily struggles to bury her trauma, diving headfirst into a new relationship and throwing herself into work. But when Kristen shows up for a surprise visit, Emily is forced to confront their violent past. The more Kristen tries to keep Emily close, the more Emily questions her motives. As Emily feels the walls closing in on their cover-ups, she must reckon with the truth about her closest friend. Can Emily outrun the secrets she shares with Kristen, or will they destroy her relationship, her freedom—even her life?”
Learning about Kristen and her childhood definitely made me suspect her motives, but her gaslighting and making Emily question herself had me questioning her too. This was an entertaining thriller and I enjoyed listening to it.
Title: Experiments in Offline Dating
Author: Kat Mackenzie
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Avon, 8/25/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Experiments in Offline Dating by Kat Mackenzie is about Maya, a podcaster who talks about dating and heads to Ireland to meet a matchmaker. Maya is Autistic and believes she cannot fall in love. The matchmaker arranges for Tadhg to drive her around Ireland even though the two had an awful date and Maya has no desire to spend more time with him.
“Maya Davis is chronically terrible at dating. So much so that she’s turned her catastrophic dating experiments into a full-time job. Hellbent on dating ‘offline’ for her second podcast season, Maya travels to Ireland to meet the world-renowned local matchmaker, and gets set up on a slew of horribly funny meet-ups that are exactly the type of comedy gold she was looking for. At the town’s annual Matchmaking Festival, Maya wins a blind date with a surly local sheep farmer. But while she’s had every bad date in the book, nothing could have prepared her for the apocalyptic, full-body-cringe that is the worst date of her life! All she wants to do is forget it ever happened, but when the mischievous matchmaker talks her into a whirlwind dating adventure, he fails to mention that it’s with the one person in Ireland that she just can’t stand – her blind date catastrophe! Trapped together, Maya and Tadhg journey across picturesque landscapes and green countryside until their constant verbal sparring feels increasingly like chemistry. And the more time they spend together, the more Maya begins to wonder if perhaps she’s not so catastrophic at love after all.”
I would say it was pretty obvious what the matchmaker was up to with Maya and Tadhg, and of course it worked! The grumpy / sunshine, enemies to lovers, forced proximity set up was pretty fun and this book had a lot of funny parts. It was also fun that Maya enjoyed romantasy and listening to audio books. I thought this was a bit too long, but a fun read overall.
Title: Queerly Beloved
Author: Susie Dumond
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Random House Audio, 5/3/22
Source: Publisher – Print, Library – Audio
Why I Read It: Backlist
My Rating: 4 Stars
From my 26 in ’26 list, I listened to Queerly Beloved by Susie Dumond. This is about Amy, who is Queer in Oklahoma, and gets fired from her job at a bakery when she is outed. Because she loves weddings, she starts to work as a paid bridesmaid. She meets Charley and falls in insta love.
“Amy, a semicloseted queer baker and bartender in mid-2010s Oklahoma, has spent a lifetime putting other people’s needs before her own. Until, that is, she’s fired from her job at a Christian bakery and turns her one-off gig subbing in for a bridesmaid into a full-time business, thanks to her baking talents, crafting skills, and years watching rom-coms and Say Yes to the Dress. Between her new gig and meeting Charley, the attractive engineer who’s just moved to Tulsa, suddenly Amy’s found something—and someone—she actually wants. Her tight-knit group of chosen family is thrilled that Amy is becoming her authentic self. But when her deep desire to please kicks into overdrive, Amy’s precarious balancing act strains her relationships to the breaking point, and she must decide what it looks like to be true to herself—and if she has the courage to try.”
Amy was very insecure and needy. She claimed she loved Charley before she was even honest with her about her firing and her new job. Thankfully, she does realize this later on. The story takes place before marriage equality and Amy being a bridesmaid when she couldn’t legally be a bride brought up interesting discussions. I liked the audio narrator for this one.
Title: You’ll Love It Here
Author: Natalie Sue
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: William Morrow, 8/11/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 3 Stars
I unfortunately didn’t love You’ll Love It Here by Natalie Sue. This is about Mona, a corporate woman who gets put on leave from her job. She starts helping out at her apartment building and gets to know the other residents.
“One day is all it takes for Mona’s life to implode. After years of climbing at her marketing firm, she was supposed to be getting promoted and finally moving out of her crumbling apartment building. Instead, she’s jobless, aimless, and still stuck in a space barely big enough for a yoga mat. Then her eccentric landlady takes a tumble and asks Mona to step in as the building’s reluctant super. The deal is simple: help prep the place for sale, and she can secure the upgrade she’s been chasing. But that’s easier said than done when the neighbors treat ‘boundaries’ as optional. There’s the shouting couple, the mysterious shut-in, a possible panty thief in the laundry room—and Sami, the relentlessly cheerful diner owner who keeps showing up with coffee and unsolicited ideas about community. As Mona gets pulled deeper into the building’s chaos—and closer to the people inside it—she’s forced to confront what, and who, she’s really been trying to outrun. Sometimes, the place you’re desperate to leave is the one that finally shows you who you are.”
I thought this was slow and predictable. I did like the Persian representation and the dachshund that Mona takes in. This book also deals with grief and difficult parental relationships.
Title: Don’t Cross Mo Ellery
Author: Birdie Horne
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: William Morrow, 8/11/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Don’t Cross Mo Ellery by Birdie Horne begins with Mo getting fired and breaking up with her boyfriend on her 29th birthday. She has to move and ends up taking a job as a crossing guard. In this position, she meets a variety of interesting characters and when one of them dies, she sets out to solve his murder.
“Mo Ellery’s 29th birthday is a disaster. After one small accident—the exposure of her boyfriend’s genitals (well, maybe not that small) on a work video call—she manages to get fired, dumped, and kicked out of their overpriced Chicago apartment. Luckily, a sign appears to guide Mo to her new life: ‘Looking for flexible part-time work? Become a school crossing guard!’ It’s everything Mo has been looking for: health insurance. How hard can it be? A few weeks later, Mo is adjusting to her new low-paying job, her bisexual reawakening, and her new neighborhood’s wacky characters. There’s Claudia, an old woman who refuses to let Mo help her cross the street, and Marlowe, a tween cell phone prodigy whose antics terrify her. But Mo’s greatest nemesis is Poodle Dude, a guy with an SUV full of poodles who speeds through her intersection each morning. . . until the day he speeds into a sinkhole. Mo tries and fails to shield innocent eyes from his bloody corpse, but succeeds in accidentally becoming the guardian to his three poodles. And that’s not the worst of it: some of the locals are convinced that Poodle Dude was murdered. Their allegations are obviously ridiculous, but Mo, desperate for distractions—and for several hot neighbor-suspects—reluctantly agrees to help. But Mo the detective is just as chaotic as Mo the underemployed adult, and the three entitled poodles are not helping. When a second local dies under mysterious circumstances, it’s going to take all of Mo’s broadly applicable and transferrable skills to find the killer.”
This book was so funny and I loved Mo and the three poodles. I will look for a sequel to this one as Mo is guaranteed to become an amateur detective who stars in a series – I just hope the next book is as funny as this one.
Title: How To Fake It In Hollywood
Author: Ava Wilder
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Random House Audio, 6/14/22
Source: Publisher – Print, Library – Audio
Why I Read It: Backlist
My Rating: 4 Stars
From my 26 in ’26 list, I listened to How To Fake It in Hollywood by Ava Wilder, and with this one, I finished reading the books I received in 2022! This was about Grey and Ethan, actors who are set up to fake date for publicity and end up falling in love.
“Grey Brooks is on a mission to keep her career afloat now that the end of her long-running teen TV show has her (unsuccessfully) pounding the pavement again. With a life-changing role on the line, she’s finally desperate enough to agree to her publicist’s scheme: fake a love affair with a disgraced Hollywood heartthrob who needs the publicity, but for very different reasons. Ethan Atkins just wants to be left alone. Between his high-profile divorce, struggles with drinking, and grief over the death of his longtime creative partner and best friend, Ethan has slowly let himself fade into the background. But if he ever wants to produce the last movie he and his partner wrote together, Ethan needs to clean up his reputation and step back into the spotlight. A gossip-inducing affair with a gorgeous actress might be just the ticket, even if it’s the last thing he wants to do. Though their juicy public relationship is less than perfect behind the scenes, it doesn’t take long before Grey and Ethan’s sizzling chemistry starts to feel like more than just an act. But after decades in a ruthless industry that requires bulletproof emotional armor to survive, are they too used to faking it to open themselves up to the real thing?”
I thought the relationship between Grey and Ethan moved pretty quickly, although Ethan had a lot of struggles to work through, including alcoholism, which no one seemed to recognize for quite awhile. While Grey admitted that she couldn’t fix him, she still seemed to take his problems personally. I really dislike the way this male narrator voices female characters, but for the most part I enjoyed listening to this one.
This post includes eight of the books I read this month. Five were print books and three were audio. They were all adult books. Genres included non-fiction, contemporary, thriller, rom com, and mystery.
Have you read any of these books or do you want to? What have you been reading lately?
