September Wrap Up!

Hello everyone and welcome back (or to!) my blog! Today I'll be going over all the books I read this September, as well as share some quick little updates.

Without further ado, here are the 12 books/plays I read this month!

1) The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

Goodreads

September started off well with this own voices romance novel! The Kiss Quotient is a romance about Stella, who hires a sex worker (Michael), to teach her how to loosen up. Stella tends to overthink when it comes to sexual endeavors. She's on the spectrum, and tends to get in her head pretty easily. Helen Hoang is both on the spectrum and Asian (the male love interest and his family are Asian) and I loved reading such a wonderful romance with accurate representation. 

2) Contagion by Erin Bowman

 Goodreads
Thoughts While Listening To...

Contagion was the only audiobook I managed to finish. If you don't know, I read audiobook much more slowly than in print. Contagion is a sci-fi thriller and it delivered! I did have little issues here and there, but Contagion was overall thrilling. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series (especially after the cliff hanger ending) 

3) Beautiful Stranger by Christina Lauren

 Goodreads

It wasn't long before I was reading Christina Lauren. I'm very quickly going through all of CL's books, and I seriously need to slow down. Beautiful Stranger is the companion sequel to Beautiful  Bastard, and a big improvement as well. 

4) Lady Susan by Jane Austen

Goodreads

So I was supposed to have this read late August, and while I did read the majority of it for class, I didn't finish it until September! Lady Susan is a great introduction to Jane Austen if you haven't read anything by her. The characters and the plot is downright hilarious. 

5) Life on the Leash by Victoria Schade

Goodreads
Review

I had an ARC of Life on the Leash and I just flew through it! Life on the Leash is a romance novel that follows a dog trainer. Though the romance is in there, it was more like a sub-plot than anything else. I had a good time reading the book, but I expected a bit more emphasis on the romance, if I'm being honest. 

6) The Cha Cha Files: A Chapina Poetica by Maya Chinchilla

Goodreads 

This is probably one of the best things I have read for university, or school in general. The Cha Cha Files is a poetry collection, and if you are interested in reading more from Latinx authors or just want to read more poetry, I highly recommend this! 

7) Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare

Goodreads

Yet again, something else I read for university. I've read Shakespeare before - A Midsummer Night's Dream, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Macbeth - but I had  never read Much Ado About Nothing. I was pleasantly surprised, and it is my favorite of the comedies so far! 

8) Beautiful Player by Christina Lauren

 Goodreads
Review

After reading stuff for class, I needed to fit in a book for pleasure. Which is why I once again turned to romance novels! Yes, I have a problem. Beautiful Player is the third book in the Beautiful series, and definitely my favorite so far. I didn't like the first book that much, but this third one really stood out for me.

9) Sweet Filthy Boy by Christina Lauren

Goodreads
Review

After reading Beautiful Player and enjoying it more than I was expecting, I was about to read the fourth when I realized that Christina Lauren had another series they started while the Beautiful series was still going. So I jumped ship and began reading the Wild Seasons series. Sweet Filthy Boy, despite its horrendous title, was heart-warming and a ton of fun. 

10) Dirty Rowdy Thing by Christina Lauren

Goodreads

After really liking Sweet Filthy Boy, I immediately picked up the sequel. Admittedly, I didn't enjoy Dirty Rowdy Thing as much, but it was still fun! Harlowe was a great MC, but I was indifferent towards Finn, the love interest, and Not-Joe, a new character introduced in this book, got on my nerves. 

11) Measure for Measure by Shakespeare

 

Goodreads

We interrupt this romance binge to bring you..more Shakespeare! Seriously, the last week of September was just me bouncing between romance novels and Shakespeare. Measure for Measure was weird. I can't say I liked it, but I didn't dislike it either. Just my luck, it is my professor's favorite comedy! 

12) Dark Wild Night by Christina Lauren

Goodreads

The final book I read this September was the third book in the Wild Seasons trilogy. I'm going to be honest, I'm beginning to tire of romance novels, and I think I need a break! *gasp* You heard that right folks, my mood has finally shifted from romance to fantasy. Thank goodness, because I was seriously writing too much about Christina Lauren. Dark Wild Night was fun, but there was just something missing, and it was a bit too formulaic for my tastes. 

Updates!

Currently Reading

Right now, I'm currently reading Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I am excited to finally be caught up on Cassandra Clare, and I'll definitely be reading Queen of Air and Darkness when it comes out later this year. As for P&P, I am liking it a lot more than Sense and Sensibility. S&S wasn't bad, but I was getting a little bored, to be honest. With P&P, there seems to be a lot more happening. 

As for what's next, I definitely want to take a break from romance and start reading some other genres. I checked out The Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness, and am going to pick up You by Caroline Kepnes from my library today! I wanted to read something along the lines of October/Halloween, and those two fit the bill! 

Goodreads Challenge

As of October 2nd, I have read 83 books this year. This means I am 8 books ahead of my schedule! Like I said last month, it's such a relief being ahead of schedule and having reading not be a source of stress. I am not going to raise my goal though. I have no idea if my reading will slow down in the coming months; university is ramping up and midterms are right around the corner for me, so I know I won't be doing that much reading then. 

Life Updates!

College has been going really well this year! I've made friends and I'm definitely more social and happy than this time last. Unlike last semester though, I am not loving any of my classes. I really like my Latino/a Literature class, but it can get really monotonous. My other classes are all okay, but nothing special. I like my schedule right now, but I know I can do better come next semester!

In extra curricular news, I am now a staff writer for Her Campus at Chapel Hill! Every week I have to write a post, with every other week being a themed week. If you are so inclined, check out our website here! My post for this week is about spooky book recommendations, so if you are looking for some, hop on by!  

So those are all the things I read and the things that happened this September!

How was your month?

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!