October TBR (2022)

 Hey guys, this is Abi here, 

And I'm catching up on the posting game by drafting this straight after my wrap up. Look at me being all productive and stuff! 

Now, I know I usually conjour up a Spooky TBR for the month of October, to keep with the Halloween theme (getting as much pumpkin spice as I can this month, before Gingerbread waltzes in like it owns the place) but this month I'm prioritising my Goodreads Goal, because I'm sick of being behind. 

So this month I'll be re-reading yet more books, all from my childhood. All from just one author actually. 

I'm warning you now, there'll be four Jacqueline Wilson books on this TBR. 

That's your warning. 

I hope you enjoy my TBR. 

1. Candyfloss, by Jacqueline Wilson 

Candyfloss tells the story of Floss who, when her mum and new husband Steve are moving the family to Australia for a year, feels split. She loves her Dad, with his greasy spoon cafe, and his way of making her feel like the most special girl in the world. So when they reveal they're moving, Floss decides to stay with her Dad. He's not great at ironing, or making nutritious meals, but they muddle along well enough. But then disaster strikes and they end up homeless, will their new found fairground help them out? 

Now, this does have some very serious themes to it, but even when a bad situation arises, you sort of always feel like Flossie and her Dad will be okay. What I love the most is the balance between the seriousness and the humour in this book. Like you never feels like it gets too heavy or too harsh in the way the story is told. 

2. Clean Break, by Jacqueline Wilson 

Bloody harsh this is! Stepdad leaves Em and her family (her siblings Vita and Maxie are his blood children) for another woman on Christmas Day! Em knows that a good story can be enough to make life seem a little better, even though they're trying to muddle through a tough time. Meeting her favourite author, Jenna Williams, would be a dream come true. But could her greatest wish be granted? Will her Dad ever come home? 

This was never my absolute favourite Jacqueline Wilson book, but it holds it's own and I like some of the themes in it. As always, the subtle and gentle introduction of difficult topics, with the hearty humour is absolutely perfect, and I am very much looking forward to re-read this. 

3. The Diamond Girls, by Jacqueline Wilson 

I'm 36 pages into this book right now, and this was the book that I was thinking the most about, out of these three Jacqueline Wilson books. It's the one that made me want to re-read them. I think what I love about The Diamond Girls is how distinguished all the girls are. They're all really easy to like and the group dynamic is very well-written. 

The Diamond Girls starts when their heavily pregnant mother reveals that they'll be moving that week. They arrive, and things all start to go downhill. All the girls go off their own; Martine storming off, Jude fighting and Rochelle on the lookout for a boyfriend. Dixie is the daydreamer, the protagonist and even though she's the youngest, she's determined to pull the family together for the first diamond boy. 

 4. Sister's Red (Fairytale Retellings #1), by Jackson Pearce 

I felt the urge to re-read one of my absolute favourite halloweenish reads this morning and since I'm already re-reading a ton this month, I thought, what the heck? It's clearly what I want to pick up next, and I'm in the mood for it (also I was stuck on what to include on my TBR after the first three books). 

Sister's Red is a Little Red Riding Hood retelling, about sisters Scarlett and Rosie, two fenris (werewolf) hunters. It's just the two of them, after their grnadmother was maliciously killed by a fenris. Scarlett is driven by the hunt, she lives and breathes it. But Rosie has always wondered, is there more to life than hunting?

I don't know what it is that drew me to this book when I first read it, but I know I always enjoy reading about the fighting, the characters, and the mystery with the Silas brothers and the fenris. Looking forward to going back to this. 

5. Sweetly (Fairytale Retellings #2), by Jackson Pearce 

Sweetly is a Hansel and Gretel retelling, and growing up, it was a strong placeholder alongside Sister's Red. But growing up, I actually think it just edges up the first book in the way the whole story comes together. Aside from that, there's a Cholocatier in this book and reading scenes that take place there always makes me hungry for chocolate. 

Sweetly is different to the original book by Brothers Grimm, but similar enough that it doesn't seem like it stems from a different story. There's shooting and training, there's another Silas brother, and of course there are fenris in this version too. Mouth is already watering at the thought of that Chocolatier. 

6. Where Am I Now? By Mara Wilson 

And again, I tack this on at the end of another TBR. I will get to you, Mara Wilson autobiography! If it's the last thing I do (actually, I'm currently flying through these Jacqueline Wilson books, so the only reason I don't pick this up will be if I decide to read something else). This novel will only take me a few hours so there really isn't any excuse for me not to finish this this month. 

From what I've read, this is an honest and emotional account of what it's like rising to fame accidentally, feeling out of place growing up in the public eye, and all the bad parts of the film industry. I've heard nothing but fantastic reviews about this book and I'll be so happy when I finally get to it. 

Okay! I hope to finish these and then some (but I just can't think of more to read at the moment) so I'm going to wrap it up here. 

As always, feel free to comment down below what you guys plan to read and we can talk about them! 

I hope you have a wonderful day and I'll see you all soon! 

Byeeee! 

-Abi xxxx