October Reading Wrap-Up

Hello, fellow bookworms! Welcome, or Welcome back! My name is Amanda, and this is where I share spoiler-free book reviews and other bookish things. Thanks for visiting. Join the conversation and share your thoughts. Let’s get Smitten for Fiction!

I can’t believe it’s November already. I’ve been busy the past two months with witch dance practice and Cauldron Sisters events. Have I talked about Cauldron Sisters before? We are a group that dresses up as witches and dances to raise money for local charities. You may have heard of “The Witch Dance” created by Wolfshäger Hexenbrut witches in Germany. Anyhow! Let’s move to my October Reading Wrap-Up.

Books Read: 4
DNF (did not finish): 0
Average Rating: 3

Title: 13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl
Author: Mona Awad
Genre: Literary Fiction
Mona Awad is one of my all-time favourite authors, and I wanted to read everything she has written. 13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl is her debut novel. In my opinion, it’s not her best. For me, Bunny is her best work so far; however, 13 Ways is an incredible piece of writing. 13 interconnected short stories show an accurate depiction of how our society creates a warped perception of women’s bodies. It’s truly unforgettable and thought-provoking.
Goodreads Link

Title: Practical Magic (Practical Magic #1)
Author: Alice Hoffman
Genre: Fantasy (Witches)
Practical Magic is such a fun read. I was hoping to read the whole series in October, but one of the holds didn’t arrive at the library. After loving the movie, I wanted to read the source material, and I also love Alice Hoffman’s writing. I did find this book to be a little slow at times, but I love the atmosphere.
Goodreads Link

Title: The Perfect Hosts
Author: Heather Gudenkauf
Genre: Mystery
The Perfect Hosts is a dramatic mystery novel with lots of secrets and lies. It wasn’t my cup of tea, but it does have an average rating of 3.98 on Goodreads (but just 349 ratings).
Click here for my review
Goodreads Link

Title: The Decameron Project: 29 New Stories From the Pandemic
Author: The New York Times (29 authors)
Genre: Anthology
Before I get into talking about this book, I need to tell you how much I hate the font that was used on the cover and for the story titles within the collection. It’s so difficult to read! Why would anyone use this font? Why?! Okay, moving on. The only reason I even read this book is that Mona Awad wrote one of the stories. The Goodreads blurb gives you a list of the story title and author. This anthology was inspired by The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio, which is a 14th-century collection of stories about human resilience. I think not enough time has passed since COVID-19, because reading these stories put me into a bit of a depressive mood, to be honest. I recommend this to readers 50 years from now. Haha joking…some of the stories are good, but it’s difficult subject matter.
Goodreads Link