When I first started posting my ‘What I Read’ monthly posts I said I wasn’t going to post if I read 3 books or less but I decided to change my mind on that as I love sharing my thoughts on the books I’ve read. Now that I’ve accomplished my Goodreads reading challenge for the year I’ve been reading less than usual so you expect fewer books in these posts but I hope I can still motivate you to read one of the books I read.
September was a wonderful reading month! I rated every book pretty high with either a 4 or 5-star. I also read my 50th book in September which is so mindblowing to me! As someone who used to struggle to finish one novel, it will never get old to me the fact that I can read more than one book in a month. haha
Make sure to follow me on Goodreads to be updated on what I’m reading and on StoryGraph if you’re curious about my book statistics.
My star reading scale
★★★★★/5 – Loved it! Would reread and recommend it to others.
★★★★/5 – Kept me entertained. I would reread.
★★★/5 – Didn’t love or hate but would recommend to others.
★★/5 – Did not enjoy it and probably skimmed through most of it.
★/5 – I hated it and regret wasting my time with this book.
DNF – Did not finish. This will probably be rare because I like to finish every book I start.
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Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak ★★★★★/5
Mallory Quinn is fresh out of rehab when she takes a job as a babysitter for Ted and Caroline Maxwell. She is to look after their five-year-old son, Teddy.
Mallory immediately loves it. She has her own living space, goes out for nightly runs, and has the stability she craves. And she sincerely bonds with Teddy, a sweet, shy boy who is never without his sketchbook and pencil. His drawings are the usual fare: trees, rabbits, balloons. But one day, he draws something different: a man in a forest, dragging a woman’s lifeless body.
Then, Teddy’s artwork becomes increasingly sinister, and his stick figures quickly evolve into lifelike sketches well beyond the ability of any five-year-old. Mallory begins to wonder if these are glimpses of a long-unsolved murder, perhaps relayed by a supernatural force.
Knowing just how crazy it all sounds, Mallory nevertheless sets out to decipher the images and save Teddy before it’s too late.
I loved Hidden Pictures! Throughout the book, you can see some of the creepy drawings that the little boy in the book draws which is fun. I also like how the author reversed the roles of the family and the main character. The only flaw I had with Hidden Pictures was that something that happens at the beginning of the story never gets brought up again and is only briefly mentioned at the end like it was nothing which I found unsatisfying. Overall, I loved this thriller and I would recommend it if you want a creepy read this spooky season.
You can purchase Hidden Pictures here
Tales from the Cafe: A Novel (Before the Coffee Gets Cold, #2) by Toshikazu Kawaguchi ★★★★/5
In a small back alley in Tokyo, there is a cafe which has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. But this coffee shop offers its customers a unique experience: the chance to travel back in time . . .
Tales from the Cafe is the follow-up to Before the Coffee Gets Cold which I read last year. I believe there are four books now in this series with a fifth installment coming out soon. Each book contains a few stories about someone who wants to use the time-traveling cafe to go back in time to a significant moment in time to meet up with someone at said cafe. Before the Coffee Gets Cold tugged at my heartstrings so I can’t wait to read the rest of the series. The way Toshikazu Kawaguchi writes is simple yet so heartwarming, you can feel the emotion from his characters and are rooting for everyone to live a wonderful life.
You can purchase Tales from the Cafe here
The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin ★★★★/5
Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable. Over the years, as he has thought deeply about where creativity comes from and where it doesn’t, he has learned that being an artist isn’t about your specific output, it’s about your relationship to the world. Creativity has a place in everyone’s life, and everyone can make that place larger. In fact, there are few more important responsibilities.
The Creative Act reminded me a lot of Big Magic which is one of my favorite books about creativity. As a creative, I love reading books written by other creatives on how they manage their creative work and process. I loved the parts where Rick mentioned his time working in the studio with other artists, I wish he would’ve brought up more of his personal experiences. You don’t have to be a music lover to enjoy The Creative Act as I think any creative or artist will benefit from reading this one. I highlighted a lot in this one! haha
You can purchase The Creative Act: A Way of Being here
Have you read any of these books? What did you read in September?
My book club did this book last year! If you like thrillers, we read a book a month, and do a video chat about it at the beginning of the following month. I’m glad you like this one too, We’re currently reading his latest release in our book club. I’ve had a copy of the original when the coffee gets cold on my shelf for about a year, and still haven’t picked up. I know I would be obsessed with it, so I know I need to hop to it. Great reviews 🙂 xx
Melina | http://www.melinaelisa.com
Your book club sounds like fun! I’ll have to check it out! Before the Coffee Gets Cold is such a wholesome series, I hope you get the chance to read it soon! ♥