Everything I read (and listened to) in October 2023

Wow! What an amazing reading/listening month it was. I felt like book after book was really great and there’s a record of 4 books with 5/5 ratings. I think it helped that I read a mix of genres – thrillers, novels, romances. Here is everything I read (and listened to) in October 2023, and you can always read past reviews here

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan 5/5– this one was a recommendation to me and I’m so glad I picked it up because omg it was SO SO good and captivating! This book was so incredibly well written and made me think and just wow, such a good story and an interesting plot with twists and turns. “Mad Honey is a riveting novel of suspense, an unforgettable love story, and a moving and powerful exploration of the secrets we keep and the risks we take in order to become ourselves.”
The Wake-Up Call by Beth O’Leary 5/5. It was such a sweet book, I definitely loved it and didn’t want it to end (but love the way it did). “Two hotel receptionists—and arch-rivals—find a collection of old wedding rings and compete to return them to their owners, discovering their own love story along the way.”
Better Hate Than Never by Chloe Liese 5/5 I listened to this one, such good narrators, several times I was loling at the inflections. “Childhood enemies discover the fine line between love and loathing in this heartfelt reimagining of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew.”
The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell 5/5 Such a good book! It was so engaging I did not want to stop listening to it because I wanted to know how the story unfolded. “From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Then She Was Gone comes “her best thriller yet” (Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author) about a young couple’s disappearance on a gorgeous summer night, and the mother who will never give up trying to find them.”
Yellowface by R. F. Kuang 4.5/5 – very good in depth look into publishing, engrossing story, it just ended too abruptly for me. “White lies. Dark humor. Deadly consequences… Bestselling sensation Juniper Song is not who she says she is, she didn’t write the book she claims she wrote, and she is most certainly not Asian American—in this chilling and hilariously cutting novel from R.F. Kuang, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Babel.”
Mad About You by Mhairi Mcfarlane 4/5 – I listened to this one, loved the accents. But I wanted more of the love story, I needed like 3 more chapters of the good stuff. It was good but not wowing me, I honestly had to read the description to remind myself what this book was about. “International best seller Mhairi McFarlane delivers a sharp, emotional new novel about a woman who calls off her engagement to “the perfect man” and moves in with a charming stranger who makes her question everything about her life, her past, and the secrets she’s kept for far too long.”