Hello hello! I hope you had a good month. This September had a bit of a return to normal for me – with work (sort of), reading, and just a reset overall! 

September in General

Since August threw me for a bit of a loop, September was a reset month for me. I was back at work at both jobs, and returned to my reading habits, too. 

This was also a time for me to really simplify things in my life. In this time, I asked myself – is there anything I’m doing that I’m overcomplicating? Is there anything (whether things, thoughts, or otherwise) that I’m holding onto that I shouldn’t be? And lastly, how can I change my habits and routines to support me each day? 

While I still have a ways to go with this (which is evident by this post being SUPER late), I’ve been enjoying experimenting with my routines and it’s definitely made everything, from work to blogging and more, much easier and more enjoyable.

September In Stats

BOOKS BREAKDOWN

September In Books

Intergalactic Exterminators, Inc.
Ash Bishop
⭐⭐⭐⭐

Goodreads | Bookshop

Finding work is easy. Staying alive is a little bit harder.

When Russ Wesley finds an unusual artifact in his grandfather’s collection of rare antiquities, the last thing he expects is for it to draw the attention of a ferocious alien from a distant planet. Equally surprising is the adventurous team of intergalactic exterminators dispatched to deal with the alien threat. They’re a little wild, and a little reckless. Worse yet, they’re so impressed with Russ’s marksmanship that they insist he join their squad . . . whether he wants to or not.

This was a really cool mix of a sci-fi novel with cozy mystery elements – it had small town bookstore vibes and everything! The characters had me really invested in the story as it evolved as well – overall a great start to my month! 

The Sunbearer Trials
Aiden Thomas
⭐⭐⭐.75

Goodreads | Bookshop

Welcome to The Sunbearer Trials, where teen semidioses compete in a series of challenges with the highest of stakes, in this electric new Mexican-inspired fantasy from Aiden Thomas, the New York Times bestselling author of Cemetery Boys.

“Only the most powerful and honorable semidioses get chosen. I’m just a Jade. I’m not a real hero.”

As each new decade begins, the Sun’s power must be replenished so that Sol can keep traveling along the sky and keep the evil Obsidian gods at bay. Ten semidioses between the ages of thirteen and eighteen are selected by Sol himself as the most worthy to compete in The Sunbearer Trials. The winner carries light and life to all the temples of Reino del Sol, but the loser has the greatest honor of all―they will be sacrificed to Sol, their body used to fuel the Sun Stones that will protect the people of Reino del Sol for the next ten years.

Teo, a 17-year-old Jade semidiós and the trans son of Quetzal, goddess of birds, has never worried about the Trials…or rather, he’s only worried for others. His best friend Niya―daughter of Tierra, the god of earth―is one of the strongest heroes of their generation and is much too likely to be chosen this year. He also can’t help but worry (reluctantly, and under protest) for Aurelio, a powerful Gold semidiós and Teo’s friend-turned-rival who is a shoo-in for the Trials. Teo wouldn’t mind taking Aurelio down a notch or two, but a one-in-ten chance of death is a bit too close for Teo’s taste.

But then, for the first time in over a century, Sol chooses a semidiós who isn’t a Gold. In fact, he chooses two: Xio, the 13-year-old child of Mala Suerte, god of bad luck, and…Teo. Now they must compete in five mysterious trials, against opponents who are both more powerful and better trained, for fame, glory, and their own survival.

I usually don’t like comps, but describing this as a cross between The Hunger Games and Percy Jackson is perfect for describing what audience would enjoy this the most. The worldbuilding didn’t always sit right with me, but when it did, it really made this story stand out! 

Lucky Girl: How I Became A Horror Writer – A Krampus Story
M. Rickert
⭐⭐⭐.25

Goodreads | Bookshop

Ro, a struggling writer, knows all too well the pain and solitude that holiday festivities can awaken. When she meets four people at the local diner—all of them strangers and as lonely as Ro is—she invites them to an impromptu Christmas dinner. And when that party seems in danger of an early end, she suggests they each tell a ghost story. One that’s seasonally appropriate.

But Ro will come to learn that the horrors hidden in a Christmas tale—or one’s past—can never be tamed once unleashed.

This book had a story and a setting I could really get behind, but I didn’t quite like the execution as much. I think this could have been even better were it a longer story and not a novella. 

Stolen City
Elisa A. Bonnin
⭐⭐⭐.75

Goodreads | Bookshop

Twin thieves attempt to pull off a daring heist in Stolen City, the sophomore fantasy novel from Dauntless author Elisa A. Bonnin.

The city of Leithon is under Imperial occupation and Arian Athensor has made it her playground.

In stealing magical artifacts for the Resistance, bounding over rooftops to evade Imperial soldiers, and establishing herself as the darling thief of the underground, Arian lives a life wrapped in danger and trained towards survival. She’ll steal anything for the right price, and if she runs fast enough, she can almost escape the fact that her mother is dead, her father is missing, and her brother, Liam, is tamping down a wealth of power in a city that has outlawed magic.

But then the mysterious Cavar comes to town with a job for the twins: to steal an artifact capable of ripping the souls from the living–the same artifact that used to hang around the neck of Arian’s mother. Suddenly, her past is no longer buried under adrenaline but intimately tied to the mission at hand, and Arian must face her guilt and pain head-on in order to pull off the heist.

As Arian and Cavar infiltrate the strongest fortress in Leithon and Liam joins the Resistance as their resident mage, the twins find themselves embroiled in court politics and family secrets, and the mission becomes more than just another artifact theft. The target is now the Imperial rule, and Arian will go to any length necessary to steal her city back.

This book had a really interesting cross between urban and high fantasy, and the characters, while I wasn’t fully invested in them from the beginning, had some standout chemistry that really kept the story intriguing. 

Beyond the Gender Binary
Alok Vaid-Menon
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Goodreads | Bookshop

Beyond the Gender Binary, spoken word poet Alok Vaid-Menon challenges the world to see gender not in black and white, but in full color. Taking from their own experiences as a gender-nonconforming artist, they show us that gender is a malleable and creative form of expression. The only limit is your imagination.

Just like the imprint says, this is a small book with quite a bit of impact. This is a book I could easily recommend to everyone, whether you don’t know as much about trans issues, or do and want to hear from the author’s perspective.

Rohan at the Louvre
Hirohiko Araki
⭐⭐⭐.75

Goodreads | Bookshop

By the bestselling author of JoJo’s Bizare Adventure. Stunning illustrations depict an original fantasy story in this captivating graphic novel. As Rohan, a young Japanese manga artist, is drawing, he meets a mysterious, beautiful woman who tells him of a cursed 200-year-old painting. The painting was created using the blackest ink ever known, which came from a 1,000-year-old tree that the painter had cut down without the approval of the Emperor. The painter was executed for this, but the painting was saved from destruction by a curator of the Louvre. A decade later, Rohan visits Paris and asks the museum to unearth the painting from deep within its archives—but he is completely unprepared for the power of the curse he has unleashed.

Since I’ve been watching JJBA for the past couple of months I’ve been wanting to read the mangas too, so I started with this one-off starting Rohan. I wasn’t familiar with this museum series of books, so this was pretty cool. Some of the story elements I wasn’t sure about as they were fleshed out, but I think I’m going to revisit this one and better develop my opinion once I finish the main series. 

Consumed
Aja Barber
⭐⭐⭐⭐.25

Goodreads | Bookshop

Aja Barber wants change.

In the ‘learning’ first half of the book, she will expose you to the endemic injustices in our consumer industries and the uncomfortable history of the textile industry; one which brokered slavery, racism and today’s wealth inequality. And how these oppressive systems have bled into the fashion industry and its lack of diversity and equality. She will also reveal how we spend our money and whose pockets it goes into and whose it doesn’t (clue: the people who do the actual work) and will tell her story of how she came to learn the truth.

In the second ‘unlearning’ half of the book, she will help you to understand the uncomfortable truth behind why you consume the way you do. She asks you to confront the sense of lack you have, the feeling that you are never quite enough and the reasons why you fill the aching void with consumption rather than compassion. And she makes you challenge this power disparity, and take back ownership of it. The less you buy into the consumer culture the more power you have.

CONSUMED will teach you how to be a citizen not a consumer.

While I feel like I know quite a bit about the impacts of fast fashion on the environment, this book not only taught me even more, but is great at showing the urgency of the problems this industry has caused. It paints a picture of the damage its caused (especially to the Global South), and how our society is built around a need to overconsume. I also liked reading about the author’s own experiences in the fashion industry, and how she’s a great example of how you can still pursue fashion as a hobby in a sustainable way.

Our Violent Ends
Chloe Gong
⭐⭐⭐.5

Goodreads | Bookshop

Shanghai is under siege in this captivating and searingly romantic sequel to These Violent Delights, which New York Times bestselling author Natasha Ngan calls “deliciously dark.”

The year is 1927, and Shanghai teeters on the edge of revolution.

After sacrificing her relationship with Roma to protect him from the blood feud, Juliette has been a girl on the warpath. One wrong move, and her cousin will step in to usurp her place as the Scarlet Gang’s heir. The only way to save the boy she loves from the wrath of the Scarlets is to have him want her dead for murdering his best friend in cold blood. If Juliette were actually guilty of the crime Roma believes she committed, his rejection might sting less.

Roma is still reeling from Marshall’s death, and his cousin Benedikt will barely speak to him. Roma knows it’s his fault for letting the ruthless Juliette back into his life, and he’s determined to set things right—even if that means killing the girl he hates and loves with equal measure.

Then a new monstrous danger emerges in the city, and though secrets keep them apart, Juliette must secure Roma’s cooperation if they are to end this threat once and for all. Shanghai is already at a boiling point: The Nationalists are marching in, whispers of civil war brew louder every day, and gangster rule faces complete annihilation. Roma and Juliette must put aside their differences to combat monsters and politics, but they aren’t prepared for the biggest threat of all: protecting their hearts from each other.

While this book’s story takes quite an interesting turn in the series, I can’t say it kept my attention as well as it did in the first book. However, much of the author’s quality of writing and attention to the historical narratives at the time remained in both books, which I was happy to see again.

That’s all for my September 2022 Wrapup. How did your month go this September? What were your favorite reads? Let me know! I’d love to know if you’ve read any of these as well and what your thoughts were!

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