September 2021 Wrap-Up

I know, I know. It happened again, I disappeared. For over a month. And I’m really sorry. School started and I was back to studying and homework. I’m gonna try to stick to a schedule. I did get to read a bit though so . . . scroll down to read about that.

Fiction

The Cousins by Karen M. McManus

I was kind of disappointed. I went into this one with high expectations, because, well duh, it’s a Karen M. McManus mystery. The first half was pretty slow, and there wasn’t enough mystery and suspense. Thankfully, the second half was much more fast-paced and actually had the characters start solving the mystery.

And honestly? Even after the whole scheme was revealed, it seemed lackluster. The family drama was probably my favorite part of the book. I also really enjoyed the flashbacks to Allison’s POV.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller

When I saw that the protagonist was described as “Female Jack Sparrow” I knew I had to pick this up. I wasn’t disappointed.

Super fast paced with a badass main character. Alosa was ruthless but still really feminine. The author found a balance between the two that is pretty hard to do.

The romance went a little too fast for me. Where’s the slowburn? Alosa immediately singled out Riden from the others and kept talking about how he was attractive. It annoyed me a lot because this book is supposed to be enemies to lovers.

But in the end, it’s just a fun pirate book. Maybe a bit cliche, but entertaining nonetheless.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller

This was more ehh for me. The plot was really repetitive and the romance just frustrated me. It’s the most annoying thing in the world when the love interests are arguing and you know that everything would be fixed if they just were honest and talked to each other.

However. Alosa’s female crew having such a big part in this book just warmed my heart. The family dynamics were so sweet.

Overall, a decent sequel. I enjoyed the first one a lot more though.

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo

Yes, another book about pirates. I was just in a mood for the sea since it’s starting to get colder outside.

This was a pretty simple standalone fantasy. Pretty basic characters but a slow-burn, angsty, enemies to lovers romance that I loved.

I’ll admit, at the beginning of this book I hated Lira. I’m okay with badass and sometimes cruel characters, but Lira was so blood-thirsty I just couldn’t root for her. And also, after she turned into a human, her arrogance annoyed me so much.

But putting that aside, the plot was really interesting and wove together well. Everything came together in the end.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon

I don’t usually like books set in a short time frame, because it usually means insta love and bland characters. However, this really impressed me.

The characters themselves were really well developed but I think the book would have improved if Neil also had a POV.

This was such good enemies to lovers (and yeah, another enemies to lovers book. I think this is number 4 of the month?). Rowan and Neil has such good banter and they were never outright cruel to each other.

So yeah. This was really good.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Opposite of Always by Justin A. Reynolds

SUCH AN AMAZING BOOK. I had really low expectations for this one, considering the 3.70 average rating on Goodreads and the fact that is a debut.

But it was just so good. I love Jack, and Kate and Jillian and Franny so freaking much. Jack’s parents should honestly be given an award for being so understanding. The time travel element was so well thought out and blended into the story so nicely.

I recommend this to literally everyone.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Nonfiction

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Currently Reading

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Here are the top posts of the month:

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~October Goals~

• Read at least 6 books
• Do more blog-hopping
• Post at least 4 times
• Exercise more

Movies/Documentaries

Badla (2019)

Dude. How was this so good? Badla was amazing. The plot twists, the characters, the acting, the suspense. I loved everything about this. It’s definitely a favorite. Even if you don’t speak Hindi (subtitles are your best friend), I highly recommend this one.

Chakde India (2007)

Another favorite. I loved this! Amazing acting, and even though I am seriously terrible at sports, I really liked the field hockey element. Also, the feminism in this was amazing. Shah Rukh Khan’s character’s speech was so freaking fantastic, I loved it (Another one I recommend.)

Kapoor & Sons (2016)

Kar Gay Chull is a banging song, you can’t convince me otherwise. This was so fun! I really loved it. The ending of this movie made me bawl (which my sister made fun of me for.) Next time I watch this, I’m doing it by myself.

Music

• Champagne Problems by Taylor Swift
• Don’t Blame Me by Taylor Swift
• No Body, No Crime by Taylor Swift
• Brutal by Olivia Rodrigo

I didn’t get to do much blog-hopping this month.

How were you guys the past couple weeks? Have you read any of these books? Leave your thoughts on this post in the comments below!