Despite feeling super busy, I surprised myself by finishing six books in September in addition to my eight BBNYA 2022 extracts. I don’t know how I did it, but I’m very happy about that. I suppose it’s called avoiding-the-world-by-reading-all-the-time. 😉 It’s a great habit. I approve. Also, no plant injuries to report this time around, so another positive in my book.

I think the biggest life thing I’ll share is that our family vacation house in southwest Florida is still there! It’s on one of the barrier islands, so we had no idea what to expect after Hurricane Ian moved on. But we finally found aerial footage from NOAA that shows it didn’t wash away. We’re feeling very fortunate about that fact, though it will take a very long time to repair everything. The only way to access that part of Florida now is by boat or air, so that will definitely add to the restoration timeline. We don’t have any boots on the ground since those individuals are first and foremost tending to their own lives, as they should. We’ll learn more with time. Lots of good memories at that house.

Anyway, let’s see how September went on the blog!

Book Reviews

I posted three book reviews in September. From earliest to latest they are:

• Tell Me An Ending by Jo Harkin
• Gleam by Raven Kennedy
• One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

I also participated in memes throughout September, as I typically do every month. You can find them in my September archives.

Blog Statistics

Every month I share some statistics from Google Analytics because I think it helps put expectations into perspective for other micro-bloggers like me who are out there.

My top five posts for unique page views in September were:

1. Call for Guest Posts for the Book Blogger Support Challenge: 50 views
2. Support Book Bloggers Challenge: Guest Post by Jude in the Stars: 44 views
3. Monthly Book Blog Wrap-Up: August 2022: 30 views
4. ARC Review: A Taste of Gold and Iron by Alexandra Rowland: 27 views
5. ARC Review: One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig: 22 views

I also gained 5 followers since August for a new total of 105! This makes my heart happy.

#BeatTheBacklog

I finished absolutely no books that I added to my TBR prior to 2022. I have no regrets.

NetGalley

I’m very happy to report that I broke the 80% feedback ratio! After submitting my review for A DOWRY OF BLOOD by S.T. Gibson I now have an 83%! I was able to achieve this by restraining myself from overzealous requesting. I also made a concerted effort the first six months of the year to read mostly NG approvals. I still have 4 books on my shelf that were published months ago. But at this point my focus is more forward looking; I’ll get to those 4 when I have time.

Other Bookish Items

• I participated in the SABRIEL read-a-long organized by Jordyn @ Birdie’s Book Nook. She posted a series of questions that I answered for weeks one, two, and three of the event.
• I went to my library’s big adult book sale. It was a bit underwhelming in terms of books for myself. I found three books to gift. For my own bookshelf I bought LIBERTIE by Kaitlyn Greenidge and THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY by Matt Haig.
• Other book purchases included WICKED BEAUTY by Katee Robert and FAIRY TALE by Stephen King. I still haven’t read the other Dark Olympus books sitting on my shelf, but oh well! And the King book showed up slightly damaged because Target didn’t do a great job packing it; so I have a new one on the way.
• Books I finished in September are: SPEAR by Nicola Griffith; SABRIEL by Garth Nix; THE ATLAS SIX by Olivie Blake; ONE DARK WINDOW by Rachel Gillig; A FORGERY OF ROSES by Jessica S. Olson; and A DOWRY OF BLOOD by S.T. Gibson.