Books I Wish I Read This October

As you may know, my reading time hasn't really been my own this last few years. Reading for an award sucked up all my already minimal time. I just have a few more months of it and then you can quit hearing about it. But for this spooky season, there are some books I wish I could have read.

Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff - I tried. I really tried. I almost got halfway through it, but I felt too guilty that I spent almost 2 weeks reading this instead of award books. I WILL finish it one day.

The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling - I've been seeing this book around for weeks. It had a lot of publisher press. Also, that cover!

56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard - This is a thriller sort of. It's set in Ireland during lockdown where they were very serious about not leaving your house. This couple has only been dating for a few weeks when lockdown starts and they have to decide: move in together or not see each other until lockdown lifts. They move in. 6 weeks later, authorities find a decomposing body in the apartment. That's it. We don't know who it is or who did it or what happened.

The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling - This is a light, romance-y, witch book. She put a hex on her ex when they broke up a billion years ago. Now they're both back in town and her hex may have worked better than she anticipated.

The Inheritance of Orquidea Divina by Zoraida Cordova - This is a magical realism book about a Honduran woman living in the U.S. who invites all her relatives to her funeral. They end up going all over the place to figure out her inheritance.

Mrs. Rocherster's Ghost by Lindsay Marcott - This is obviously a retelling of Jane Eyre and I've heard it's great.

The Cousins by Karen McManus - I love this author. This book came out last award year, but I didn't get a copy of it in time to read it for last year's award, so I had to let it go. I still want to read it though!

The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz - This is a thriller about a creative writing professor. A student turns in a perfect plot idea and the professor waits for the novel to be published. Several years later no novel, so he does some digging and finds out the student has died. He writes the novel himself and basks in the praise of critics and readers alike. Until one day he gets a message that someone knows he stole it.

So there you go. A bunch of spooky/thriller-y books I would have read if my time was my own.