Running total books/audiobooks/short stories read in 2026 by month end: 77
While this blog marks a return to monthly reviews, it apparently does not not mark a return to simplicity. Despite wanting something to take a good bite out of all month, I had one of those months where my brain turned into a quivering mess whenever I tried to engage with horror of any kind, and so I went on a cozy story and romantasy binge. I may well have needed to wash the John Wayne Gacy story from September out of my brain. Possibly as a direct result of my reading choices, I then couldn’t find anything I would absolutely and definitively rate as five stars. So I did the unthinkable, broke my normal approach, and jumped on a trend, finally reading ACOTAR, may all the pagan gods of horror forgive me.
As you can see, either I had exactly zero genuine five star reads during October, or I was a moody little witch with no call to be reviewing anything. Either is possible. The weather was miserable after all, and I did not have to play nice, given that it was basically Halloween and I was stuck literarily almost horror-free. My personal issues aside, there were a couple of options that I felt came close.
The first offering was not it, despite it having been on my TBR since before it was released. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is one that I am mentioning because I looked forward to reading it, it is by an author I have read and appreciated before, and significantly, it was the only horror novel I forced myself through in October. Maybe I expected perfection? Whatever the reasons, I did not feel we quite reached it. My moodiness may have kicked in here, but how many times can one heroine drop a blasted weapon??? Did she have some weird kind of hand-related disability? If I were threatened with my life, I think I’d at least try and hang on to any protection I’d managed to grab, and I’m both hypermobile and arthritic? Then there was the heroine herself. Good grief, stop telling me she’s feisty and show me! Nope. This useless little bundle of chiffon literally had to be rescued at every turn, irritating my admittedly somewhat feminist sensibilities with her sheer ineptitude. The storyline recovered the rating for this one, basically ramming Tanith Lee’s Blood Opera Sequence violently together with The Last of Us and adding a tiny fiefdom. Very imaginative, I like it. The rain and fog suited my mood. Shame I’d already read The Possession of Alba Diaz despite it being newer, so some of the impact was lost on me. This author is good though, if you haven’t read her work, ignore me and read something. You will probably be less miserable than me and enjoy it more.
My next honourable mention was The Reimagining of Thornwood House by Jaleigh Johnson, which I admit to thoroughly enjoying. It has higher stakes than some cozy series, but was exactly what I was looking for this month, which was a warm, non-murderous hug with absolutely no clowns. I loved the adoption element of the storyline. Too many adoptive- and step-mothers get bad press or no press in novels; this perspective I really liked. The sentient house, I loved. Peaceful magicky village, okay done before, but that is no reason not to like another version if it’s fluffy and maple syrupy and pretty. Warm hug, remember? The magic styles and general storyline, I liked, and found fairly original. Yes there probably are stronger options, but I cannot think of anything off the top of my head that has all these elements together in it. Definitely worth a relaxing read.
Next, I am highlighting Reap & Sow by Charlotte B. Plumb, which was a complete impulse buy on my part. I saw the release notification on my e-reader, it was the sort of thing I was reading this month, and I just… bought it. No planning at all. I cannot describe how rarely I do that any more with the sheer amount I read now. I had not expected very much, and honestly I was pleasantly surprised. This was a debut novel (therefore do not expect perfection, I do not think that is fair on a new author), had a lovely, almost historic setting, and was a little gothic in tone. I particularly liked the definite imperfections of the male love interest. The characters were fun, even the villain, and there was more than one neutral character wandering around the place. The storyline felt genuinely unusual and refreshing. Glad I wandered across it!
And finally, the bit you came for. ACOTAR. Properly known as A Court of Thorns & Roses by Sarah J. Maas. You may already have noticed this one did not get five stars from the wicked witch over here, although, yes, it is good. Like, weird addiction good once you start reading it. I inhaled it over two days, and it was only that long because I fell asleep. What is wrong then I hear you ask. Well, firstly it’s a rip-off of some genuine five-star classical literary excellence, which is fine, except it doesn’t bother to say it on the package. I’d have settled for an ‘inspired by’ on the cover, but no. These are not the bad old days, and we know better, so I felt I had to raise it. Secondly, my number one pet hate, continuity errors. It’s subtle in this one, I admit, but they are definitely there. If you want me to take the characters seriously, the author at least should be able to remember the main traits they were written with, or lacking that, hair colour at the very least. Note the main points down somewhere (like, in the already written paragraphs of your own novel), and then plan the rest out, surely? Do not just churn so much out that you forget which villain you’re writing. Also, do not let the continuity errors spread into settings and plot points, or actually to the whole second half of the novel. This one is lovely, but it is also basically two classics literally bolted together in the middle like Frankenstein’s Monster. Finally, the (admittedly mild) non-consensual tropes that did bubble to the surface in a couple of places. This book is advertised as YA and I have three YA daughters. Again, this is a new world we are in, and this is a modern book, so at the very least please acknowledge the trope is in there.
Visit the My Bookshelf 2026 page for more reviews of the October book list.
As always, thanks for reading along!
These books were all reviewed by me on the My Bookshelf 2026 page, and wherever possible, on my GoodReads and Storygraph accounts; you can follow me and comment on these sites. I sometimes wander across rare, old, or unusual stories that are not listed on these forums, which will appear only on My Bookshelves. Please note that I include audiobooks in my reading record, and absolutely do consider oral forms of storytelling to be a legitimate and inclusive form of reading. The summary of my reading challenge for 2025 can also be found in My Bookshelf 2025 page.
