My reading and listening during September increased ever so slightly in comparison to August. The boys went back to school, so I had more time for audiobooks without distractions. I’m hoping I’ll manage to keep up with this again in October, although I do need to increase it a little for the rest of the year to complete my reading challenge!

I managed six books in September, with three of those for book clubs – this is a running theme now!  Out of the other three, two were books that were on my TBR pile, and one was for a recommended books reading challenge.

The majority of the books I read in September were audiobooks, and the other was an ebook, which was also the only nonfiction. Storygraph tells me I physically read 388 pages and listened to just over 72 hours!

All The Colours of the Dark by Chris Whitaker 5*

This is one of the books that was on my TBR and bumped to the top when it was chosen for one of my online book clubs. I was drawn in from the beginning as the writing was so engaging, raw, and beautiful. It was more than easy to feel empathy for the main characters and their heartbreaking story. They had depth, and I learned a lot about them throughout.

It was a long audiobook; however, the shorter chapters had me wanting to keep listening to see where it was going next. I did begin to wonder where it could go next at one point, but boy did it keep giving me more. It took me through a whole rollercoaster of emotions, and although there were a lot triggers, it’s one I will be recommending.

The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst 4.5*

In nothing short of a miracle, I started this sequel only a few weeks after finishing the first book! I couldn’t wait to get stuck in, though, and I enjoyed it just as much as I did The Spellshop. It had me engaged right from the beginning, and I was hooked on the whimsical atmosphere.

It was great to hear about the characters from the first book – especially Caz the spider plant! The new main characters – Terlu and Yarrow – were easy to like, as was Lotti the sentient rose (I have a thing for plants.) The story flowed well, and everything was wrapped up by the end. However, I did think it could have been just a little shorter. I look forward to the third book in the series next year!

Notes on a Nervous Planet by Matt Haig 3.5*

I spotted this book in the library after reading two of Matt’s other nonfiction books (Reasons To Stay Alive and The Comfort Book). I decided I’d check this one out as I enjoyed the others. The format was similar to the other two with organised “chapters” so that was familiar.

It did seem a lot more factual than the others – more data and technology-driven. Even though I guess that is the focus of the book, I did have to force myself to pick it up at points. Saying that, there were certainly some parts that really gave me pause for thought about the future of the next generations.

Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson 4.5*

This was a book that was added to my TBR quite recently, but it made it to the top after being chosen for one of my online book clubs. I’ve read a couple of Holly’s YA books previously and enjoyed them, so I was looking forward to reading this.

It had me hooked from the beginning, and I found it to be unputdownable the whole way through. There were so many twists, turns, and secrets that I kept changing my mind about the killer right up until the end!

One of my only gripes is that even though the main character was 27, she felt much younger. This did make it feel like another YA book. There was an eclectic mix of characters, though most of them were unlikeable (yet intriguing!) Overall, I did really enjoy it and will continue to read more of Holly’s books.

Greenwild: The World Behind The Door by Pari Thomson 4.5*

I’d never heard of this book or author before it was suggested for one of my 12 books recommended by 12 friends challenge. I do, however, prefer this type of fantasy to high fantasy as it doesn’t take so much brainpower!

It was really easy to get into and was fast-paced throughout. The world-building was low stakes and just flowed with the story. I also found it really whimsical! There was such a variety of human and magical characters, and I was really invested in the journey of the main character. The subplots worked well, too, and all made sense by the end. I will be reading the next in this series!

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë 3.5*

This was the final of my book club reads for September – this time for my “in-person” club. I haven’t read many classics, but I was put off by the sheer length of this. Luckily, I found the audiobook on Libby, or I don’t think I would have managed to get through it!

I did struggle to get into it, and I feel like nothing happened until the second half. It seemed like there were a lot of details that didn’t need to be there. This did cause me to keep zoning out and missing bits. It did pick up in the second half, and I will say that it felt very atmospheric and easy to picture what was happening.

I did like the format switching between character narration and diary entries. Although it was lengthy and I didn’t necessarily love it, the topics covered were just as relevant today. We did have a lot of discussion around this in our book club. It’s quite a feminist novel about the fight against autonomy, and the storyline on the whole was interesting.

My star ratings show that All The Colours of the Dark was obviously my favourite read in September! Have you read any of these? What was your favourite book of the month?