Happy October! I'm not sure how exactly it got to be October already, but oookkkayyy. Fall is my favorite season, even if we don't get a traditional one here in the Phoenix area. It's still over 100 degrees outside. Maybe if I crank up the air conditioning, cuddle up with a fuzzy blanket, and read some good Gothic novels I'll be able to convince myself it's REAL Fall. Wish me luck.

How did you do with reading bookish books in September? I ended up reading eight, way more than I thought I would, mostly because I didn't realize a lot of them had bookish elements in them. What a happy surprise! Since there are so many of them, I'll skip the book jacket photos and the plot summaries and just link the titles to my Goodreads review. Why yes, yes, I am feeling a little lazy this evening. 

Christmas Crimes at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler (editor) - 3 1/2 stars

The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels by India Holton - 3 1/2 stars

An Uninterrupted View of the Sky by Melanie Crowder - 5 stars

Things We Didn't Say by Amy Lynn Green - 4 stars

Look in the Mirror by Catherine Steadman - 4 stars

Murder at the Library by Ellen Jacobson - 3 stars

The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose - 4 stars

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter - 4 stars

This month, I'm mostly going to be working on making progress on my reading challenges and reading books for the Cybils Awards. I don't know how many bookish books I'll actually get to, but here are a couple I have my eye on:

Chaos at the Lazy Bones Bookshop by Emmeline Duncan—This cozy mystery sounds like lots of fun. It's set in a Halloween-themed town in Oregon and stars Bailey Briggs, who manages the local bookstore. Just as the festive Halloween season is kicking off, someone is murdered. The police have damning evidence that points to Bailey as the killer. She'll have to play amateur sleuth in order to clear her name.

Murder on the Page by Daryl Wood Gerber (available October 22, 2024)—Another cozy, this one centers around Allie Catt, a caterer and personal chef who creates feasts inspired by literature. When a woman is murdered at one of her parties, Allie turns to her favorite fictional detectives to guide her own amateur investigation into the crime. 

Even though I despise cutesy character names, I still think this one sounds entertaining.