Read in October 2024
In October, Becca from Becca and The Books organized another round of Spookoplathon. Although I initially played my game very enthusiastically behind the scenes, resulting in a dedicated TBR, I quickly lost track of it and mostly read I felt like.
In the end, I finished October with 5 books, good for 2113 pages. The average October book comes to 423 pages/book.
There was also one book that I started, but quickly gave up on. This brings my number of DNFs for this year to 4 books for now.
In terms of reviews, October was a bit of a mixed bag. A few great books, but also a few quite disappointing ones. This brings the average book of October to 3.0 stars.
In terms of target audience, there was not much variation with 1 Young Adult book and 5 adult books, including the book that I did not finish.
In terms of reading style, there was a bit more variation in 1 e-book, 3 audiobooks and 2 physical books from my personal collection.
For the genres, I switched between 3 genres, namely romance (1), mystery (1) and fantasy (4).
For the language, I stuck with English again and did not read a single book in Dutch.
Below is a list of books I read in October and my star rating.
Click on the link to jump to the blurb and my review! As always, be aware that both blurb and review may contain spoilers, especially if it’s a sequel in a series!
- Sutton, K.J. – Straight on ’til Morning (DNF)
- Fry, Stephen – Heroes (Stephen Fry’s Great Mythology #2) 🎧 ★★★★
- Watson, Andrew – Harbinger of Justice (Shadowbinders #1) ★★★★
- Gaiman, Neil – Anansi Boys 🎧 ★★★
- Harrow, Alix E. – Starling House ★
- Johnson, Maureen – Death at Morning House 🎧 ★★★
Sutton, K.J. – Straight on ’til Morning (DNF)
Genre: Romance
Wendy Davenport can’t dodge the bank much longer, and her family’s dire circumstances aren’t improving. She knows change is on the horizon. It soon comes in the form of Peter, whose name is whispered in the streets by friends and enemies alike. They call him a wish granter. A miracle worker. A demon.
One of those enemies sees an opportunity. Lady Julie Bainbridge, a wealthy woman who knows the truth about the Davenport household. She presents Wendy with a choice—kill Peter and get paid handsomely for her troubles, or all of London will know about her family’s ruin.
With no other alternative, Wendy journeys to Neverland with the intention of ending Peter’s life. A task that may prove even more difficult as her attraction to him continues to grow.
Will Wendy be able to strike when it matters most, or will the magic of Neverland—and the boy who holds its heart—jeopardize all she holds dear?
Content warning: This novel contains scenes or themes of dubious consent, sex, profanity, queerphobia, sexism, murder, amputation, and an animal death.
DNF after 5 chapters (80 pages; ±18%)
This book threw me off right from the start.
It opens in the most bizarre, cringy way, with a rather in your face spicy scene without introduction or buildup. The way this made me frown and uncomfortable should have been enough to put the book down, but the average rating for this is pretty good and I follow a couple of people online with similar tastes to mine who are quite positive about this book, so I gave it a little more time.
Unfortunately everything about this book – from its weird, underdeveloped plot to the extremely clunky, incoherent writing – kept bothering me.
I’ve been pushing through too many books lately, hoping they’ll get better, but they rarely do. A lesson I need to remember better.
So DNF’ing this early on and I actually don’t feel guilty about it at all, but rather relieved that this can go on the unhaul pile.
🎧 Fry, Stephen – Heroes (Stephen Fry’s Great Mythology #2) ★★★★
Genre: Fantasy/Mythology
There are Heroes – and then there are Greek Heroes.
Few mere mortals have ever embarked on such bold and heart-stirring adventures, overcome myriad monstrous perils, or outwitted scheming vengeful gods, quite as stylishly and triumphantly as Greek heroes.
In this companion to his bestselling Mythos, Stephen Fry brilliantly retells these dramatic, funny, tragic and timeless tales. Join Jason aboard the Argo as he quests for the Golden Fleece. See Atalanta – who was raised by bears – outrun any man before being tricked with golden apples. Witness wily Oedipus solve the riddle of the Sphinx and discover how Bellerophon captures the winged horse Pegasus to help him slay the monster Chimera.
Filled with white-knuckle chases and battles, impossible puzzles and riddles, acts of base cowardice and real bravery, not to mention murders and selfless sacrifices, Heroes is the story of what we mortals are truly capable of – at our worst and our very best.
Ah, amazing yet again!
I read the first Stephen Fry mythology book – Mythos – with my eyes and I thought it was absolutely fantastic. I devoured this one via audiobook, read by Fry himself, and this takes the retellings to an even higher level. Really top tier!
Recommended for every mythology lover or anyone who wants to learn more about the Greek myths and legends!
Watson, Andrew – Harbinger of Justice (Shadowbinders #1) ★★★★
Genre: Fantasy
In the desert city of Yontar, Nya cares for her sick mother. But when Nya is arrested, her mother’s death is all but certain unless Nya joins a secret project that promises her freedom. If she survives.
Rai, a mercenary, has a shadow dark enough for two. In his quest to discover the nature of the creature living in his shadow, Rai collides with old friends and new enemies, stumbling into an ancient mystery that could mean the end of the world as they know it.
All the while, a darkness stirs and rebellion threatens, helmed by a man who promises justice will reign.
You can read my full review here.
🎧 Gaiman, Neil – Anansi Boys ★★★
Genre: Fantasy
Fat Charlie Nancy’s normal life ended the moment his father dropped dead on a Florida karaoke stage. Charlie didn’t know his dad was a god. And he never knew he had a brother. Now brother Spider is on his doorstep—about to make Fat Charlie’s life more interesting . . . and a lot more dangerous.
This book has been on my TBR for years and was one of the reads I really wanted to get of my list this year. Due to the recent news about the author, I did hesitate to start this now, but finding out that the audiobook on Storytel was narrated by Lenny Henry pulled me over the edge.
Going into this, I for some reason thought this was a middlegrade book in the vein of Coraline. Instead, it was very adult and more like American Gods. If I had realized this earlier, I would have definitely read this sooner, since I adore American Gods.
In itself, this was a great, excellently written and buildup story.
Just like American Gods, I loved the way our world blended with the mythological one and how Gods are integrated into everyday life.
It has humour, adventure, mystery and danger. Characters who feel real and you can just see forming in your head, helped tremendously by the incredible voicing by Lenny Henry.
Solely thinking about the story in a void, this would have probably been a favourite read of the year.
Unfortunately, however, I was not able to separate the knowledge about the author from the story.
I was very uncomfortable reading the parts in the book where the lecherous old Mr. Nancy flirts and gropes young woman. It’s told in a way that’s meant to be endearing, which could may well have been read as such before, but now it kind of left a bad taste in my mouth. This was the same every time something sexual came up or if a woman was described or if relationship dynamics came into play. I couldn’t help getting icky feelings, which was really detrimental to my reading enjoyment.
In the end, Anansi Boys sported Neil Gaiman’s signature blend of myth, humour and character development, and if read in isolation, it would be high up on my favourites. However, being aware of the recent events surrounding the author, certain character behaviours hit differently.
Harrow, Alix E. – Starling House ★
Genre: Fantasy
Eden, Kentucky, is just another dying, bad-luck town, known only for the legend of E. Starling, the reclusive nineteenth-century author and illustrator who wrote The Underland–and disappeared. Before she vanished, Starling House appeared. But everyone agrees that it’s best to let the uncanny house―and its last lonely heir, Arthur Starling―go to rot.
Opal knows better than to mess with haunted houses or brooding men, but an unexpected job offer might be a chance to get her brother out of Eden. Too quickly, though, Starling House starts to feel dangerously like something she’s never had: a home.
As sinister forces converge on Starling House, Opal and Arthur are going to have to make a dire to dig up the buried secrets of the past and confront their own fears, or let Eden be taken over by literal nightmares.
If Opal wants a home, she’ll have to fight for it.
I was quite hopeful when starting Starling House, drawn in by its promise of an engaging Gothic tale, complete with a spooky house and a dark, fairy tale-like mystery. The story initially delivered intrigue, setting the stage with atmospheric prose that hinted at deeper secrets. However, this momentum was quickly lost as the story became bogged down by overly descriptive and pretentious writing. What started as beautifully crafted descriptions soon felt excessive, dragging the story down and obscuring a plot that ultimately proved flimsy and poorly developed.
The pacing was uneven, resulting in a sluggish narrative that struggled to maintain tension or myengagement. While the beginning of the novel drew me in with promise, the middle section dragged on with excessive introspection and repetitive exposition that felt more like filler than substantive storytelling. By the time the climax arrived, it paradoxically managed to feel both rushed and overly drawn out.
Opal, the protagonist, was another stumbling block for me. While flawed characters can often enhance a story, Opal’s immaturity, stubbornness, and abrasive demeanor made her difficult to root for. Her know-it-all attitude, coupled with an incessant refusal to accept help or listen to others, drove the plot—as thin as it was—in frustrating directions. Worse, there was little to no character growth by the end of the book. Opal’s journey felt stagnant, leaving no satisfying resolution or sense of transformation.
The romance subplot between Opal and Arthur was similarly underwhelming and seemed tacked on rather than integral to the story. Despite Arthur serving as a secondary POV character, he remained flat and underdeveloped. Their dynamic lacked all chemistry and spark, making it very hard to root for or believe in their relationship.
The biggest disappointment for me though was the titular Starling House itself. A Gothic story thrives on a setting that feels alive, almost like a character in its own right. While the house was introduced with promise, its role was disappointingly minimal. Beyond the occasional creak or convenient secret passage, it never became the foreboding, enigmatic force that the title suggested.
The author also made some weird stylistic choices, such as the use of footnotes at the beginning of the book. Initially, these footnotes added an intriguing, albeit peculiar, touch, but their inconsistent presence and the lack of explanation regarding their origin or narrator only compounded the frustration around the story’s unexplained elements.
Another questionable choice was the way the major fantasy elements were presented. Each time a new aspect of the story emerged, the author pulled readers out of the main narrative to read a letter or diary entry that explained the events. This approach disrupted the flow, reducing connection and tension. And even despite these, many questions still remained unanswered.
In summary, Starling House had the foundation for a compelling Gothic tale but fell apart under the weight of its own aspirations. A promising start, a beautiful cover, and an intriguing concept were ultimately overshadowed by pretentious prose, a lackluster plot, an unsympathetic protagonist, and underutilized elements that could have made the story great.
🎧 Johnson, Maureen – Death at Morning House ★★★
Genre: YA Mystery
The fire wasn’t Marlowe Wexler’s fault. Dates should be hot, but not hot enough to warrant literal firefighters. Akilah, the girl Marlowe has been in love with for years, will never go out with her again. No one dates an accidental arsonist.
With her house-sitting career up in flames, it seems the universe owes Marlowe a new summer job, and that’s how she ends up at Morning House, a mansion built on an island in the 1920s and abandoned shortly thereafter. It’s easy enough, giving tours. Low risk of fire. High chance of getting bored talking about stained glass and nut cutlets and Prohibition.
Oh, and the deaths. Did anyone mention the deaths?
Maybe this job isn’t such a gift after all. Morning House has a horrific secret that’s been buried for decades, and now the person who brought her here is missing.
All it takes is one clue to set off a catastrophic chain of events. One small detail, just like a spark, could burn it all down—if someone doesn’t bury Marlowe first.
Having loved Maureen Johnson’s Truly Devious series, I was eager to dive into Death at Morning House. While the story had an intriguing premise and cozy, autumnal vibe (despite being set in summer), it took time to find its footing. It took me a while to get used to main character Marlowe and her self-deprecating humor, and though she grew on me, she and the rest of the cast felt somewhat forgettable.
The real highlight was the atmospheric setting of the island mansion and the past timeline’s mystery, which captured my interest far more than the present-day plot. The mirroring of past and present events was a subtle, but nicely executed touch, but the resolutions were too quick and lacked surprises. Overall, while this was an enjoyable, light read, it fell flat without significant twists, serving more as a fleeting palate cleanser than a memorable story.
