Hey guys, this is Abi here,
And I'm here with my October Wrap Up (what? A second post in four days? Who is she?)
Why, I am a person who likes writing wrap ups. Because they have a start, and an ending.
With a story, especially one that you don't know the ending to yet, can take hours.
A wrap up will always have a definite ending- when I've ran out of books to talk about.
Today, I talk about 8 books.
I hope you enjoy it.
1. Beneath the Sugar Sky (Wayward Children #3), by Seanan McGuire
After the first two stories in this, increasingly interesting Saga, I was more than ready for the third one. However, this one was a little different. It wasn't an origin story, like Jack and Jill's, or even based in one location, like Every Heart A Doorway. This was, let's have an impossible character, offspring of a deceased character, show up out of the blue and take us all on an adventure, in order to ressurect said character. If you've read book one of this, you know which character I'm talking about.
This is the book where I realised, if I was to find my own door, I reckon I'd find myself in a logic world.
Because this nonsense world had me paying close attention, or else I'd have gotten lost.
Not to say it wasn't exciting, seeing a collection of characters I'd met before, and a couple of new ones, on an adventure, in multiple locations, but I really needed to slow the reading speed down for this one.
Solid four stars as always though.
2. All Time Low: Last Young Renegades, by Tres Dean
3. Illegal, by Eoin Colfer
4. Monstress, Volume 3: Haven (Monstress, Vol #3), by Marjorie Liu
I've included these together, because I read them all in the same day. I was determined to finish my Goodreads Reading Challenge in November, and having pursued Strangers in Time, for a couple of weeks without finishing, I of course turned to my quick and snappy graphic novel collection.
All Time Low: Last Young Renegades, I think came out around the aformentioned album. It tells the story of two people that know one another, but have never really crossed paths, following the clues around the town they grew up in, in order to find a secret All Time Low gig, a band that dropped off the face off the Earth a few years ago. It's filled with some of All Time Low's greatest songs, so you can plug your headphones in and listen along, if that's what floats your boat. Good book to re-visit every so often.
Illegal tells the story of a young boy, on a journey to Europe, to reunite with his older brother and sister. It jumps between two time periods- young Ebo setting out on his own, trying to get from the Sahara Desert, to the last place he heard his brother was, and after that, trying to get to Europe. Both time periods are heart-wrenching, but hopeful throughout, as each time Ebo encounters a new threat, you wonder whether he will finally make it Europe, with all of his family intact. Award winning drawings, and story.
Monstress, Vol 3: Haven was okay. I remembered enough of the first and second volumes to not have to re-read them, but it was kind of up and down for me throughout. At some points, I found myself thinking, maybe I should give up on this series. I don't read it enough to want to carry on, and some parts I found myself wanting to put the damn thing down. Not to mention, re-reading that huge first volume was not something I was excited about revisiting.
But, the second half redeemed itself, and that ending had me on tenterhooks. So I'll continue on with Volume four, and see how I feel.
Will more than likely be skipping the history lessons from now on though.
5. In An Absent Dream (Wayward Children #4), by Seanan McGuire
Okay, I think this is my favourite one by far. This world feels like it could be mine. Bookish girl, daughter of the headteacher at her school. We know her character after this story takes place, by the way.
She goes into a tree, to a place that has fair value, at it's core. You can be friends with people, and take on some of their debt, if you want to.
And, you can come and go a couple of times. I sped through this one in two days, or something ridiculous like that.
Even now, two weeks after finishing it, is it in the back of my head. It really didn't take long for me to get sucked into the story, desperate to hear what would happen next.
6. Strangers in Time, by David Baldacci
Sometimes, when books take you nearly an entire month, you end up loathing the book. That was not the case with me. For some reason, I was still invested, from day one, all the way to day twenty-six.
I loved these characters, I loved the short, but gripping chapters, where it was one tragedy after another with this book. But through it all, was the constant of Ignatius, Molly and Charlie, as the world seemed to collapse around them.
Set in 1944, Charlie is taken care of by his nan, his only remaining family. She thinks he is safely at school, but really, he is doing everything he can to help his family.
Molly has returned to central London, after a hiatus away in Leiston, expecting to come home to a loving family. Only the cleaner remains.
Only the kindness of Ignatius Oliver, owner of 'The Book Keep' keeps Molly and Charlie afloat when WWII continues to devastate London.
I honestly don't know if I want to read any more of David Baldacci, to be honest. Not because it wasn't amazing- quite the opposite actually, I'm considering adding it to my Favourites List of 2026- but because I don't really want to mess with my idea of story-telling this good. Not to mention, Davud Baldacci, at the moment, has yet to release any more historical fiction novels.
Maybe I will, but only if people are persuading enough in the comments!
7. If I Stay (If I Stay #1), by Gayle Forman
So I read this in two days. That should be enough to say how much I enjoyed this, even the second time around.
This was exactly what I needed, after whittling away at Strangers in Time for the past month.
Of course, I definitely wasn't immune to the emotional impact of this book.
And the ending gives just enough away, that you feel satisfied (and leave you thinking you want more, but actually don't).
Okay, if you maybe weren't reading when this came out, or when the film came out in 2014 (why not)?, then I'll do a brief summary.
If I Stay is about seventeen-year-old Mia, who has been playing the cello since she could walk, and loves Adam, who is in a new budding rock band. She is awaiting the results of her audition for Julliard in September, when she takes a trip out with her parents, and her little brother Teddy, on an unexpected snow day. The next moment, she is stood in limbo, trying to decide whether she face everything that comes with a freak car accident, or go on to, not.
The trailer of this film, with the words "Say something, I'm giving up on you." Is enough to make me start bawling whenever I do.
Everybody on booktube, or anyone who has watched the trailer, will understand this.
Just, a really good book, that needed to be read, so I could move on to the final book in the duology.
8. Where She Went (If I Stay #2), by Gayle Forman
I finished Where She Went under an hour ago, so on to the wrap up, to shed some of my thoughts on this, heavy novel.
I gave it 4.5 stars. Loved it.
It was the perfect coupling to book one, reading from Adam's POV. Three years had passed since the events of book one, and Adam had made it big with Shooting Star. Mia is nowhere to be found, having sprouted her wings to Julliard, and gone radio silent on Adam, who has been left behind, despite being a world famous musician.
Honestly, you can't help but feel sorry for him. He was almost forced to move on, but even three years later, is still clinging on to what it was like before the accident/before Mia dumped him.
The way he's behaving, the way he has isolated himself from everyone that once cared about him, you can almost justify, because of how shitty the hand he's dealt has been. My hands are shaking, trying to get the right words out right now. Clearly I need to write a review for this. And soon.
Basically, a change of plans means he has one evening of freedom, to unwind, before his hectic schedule claims him back.
Mia, travelling to Japan the following day, happens to be in the same place, for the first time in three years.
What follows is bloody messy, and emotional, and made me want to break down in tears, at every chapter. Basically, this book poses the question: Will Mia and Adam be able to work it out and find some sort of peace after all this time, or will the devastating path that they share cut them apart completely?
I started this book tuesday morning, and I was telling my colleague about it by tuesday afternoon. I was 16 pages in at that time.
I seriously need to start thinking about this review. Soon.
Okay! Those are all of the books I finished in the month of October! It truly seems that, in the past two months, I really have been racking through them! (They have all been fairly small, but maybe I'll tackle something slightly larger next month? Who knows?)
If you have read any of these, and have thoughts, feel free to comment below, I love to hear everyone's thoughts!
I hope you have a wonderful evening, and I'll see you soon, with my November TBR (2026)!
Byeeee!
-Abi xxxxxxx
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