What’s On My Plate – October 2015

Happy Fall, everyone! Unfortunately for those of us in California (and no doubt other western states), Fall has yet to make an appearance. A quick check of the temps this week shows highs in the 90s! All I want is to be able to wear jeans and a hoodie, I mean really, is that too much to ask?? In Book World, however, things are looking really good. Tons of new book releases make this a fantastic time of year—although frustrating too, because I know I’ll never be able to read everything I want to.

I was tempted to completely skip this month’s What’s On My Plate, because like last year, October is going to be hairy for me, at least the first couple of weeks. My daughter’s Vocal Music Association puts on a big show called Burroughs on Broadway, and once again, I’m co-producing the show. Which means starting now, I’m going to be super busy. I expect I’ll be way behind with reading review books, and I won’t have as much time to chat with other bloggers, leave comments, answer comments, etc. If you see things slow down here the first couple of weeks of October, just know that I’ll be back up and running soon after.

Not only that, but I’m feeling a bit of burn-out right now, and what I really want to do this month is to go back and catch up on all the horror books I’ve missed over the past year or so, due to too many review commitments. So, I’m offering up my “plan” for October, knowing full well that it’s going to change….

Books for review:

Menagerie by Rachel Vincent. This sounds perfect for the Halloween season! Dark and dangerous things take place in a circus…

Owl and the City of Angles by Kristi Charish. The second book in Kristi’s fun urban fantasy series, I can’t wait to get to this one!

Our Lady of the Ice by Cassandra Rose Clarke. I’ve been talking about this book FOREVER, and pub month is finally here:-)

Rising Tide by Rajan Khanna. Another second book in a series, these books are steampunk and zombies and romance and more!

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness. I’ve seen some mixed reviews, but I’m pretty confident I’m going to love this.

The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson. I’m going to try to squeeze this in, even though it was sent unsolicited, I’ve heard really good things!

The Song of Synth by Seb Doubinsky. I have so many Talos/Nightshade books that the publishers have been kind enough to send, so I’m vowing to make my way through them whenever I can. This one is calling to me, so it’s next!

Reviews on The Speculative Herald:

If you haven’t visited The Speculative Herald yet, check it out! Five spec fiction bloggers, including myself, join together to review the latest books in the genre. (I’ll also be cross-posting these reviews here.)

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff. One of the coolest ARCs I’ve ever seen, and I’ve heard nothing but raves for this book. My review goes live on October 8th.

After Alice by Gregory Maguire. I love this guy, and it’s been years since I’ve read anything by him. This is his take on the Alice in Wonderland story. My review goes up on October 22.

Four horror books I want to read this month:

The Three by Sarah Lotz. I’ve been dying to read this since it was released last year, and it’s high on my list. The follow-up to this, Day Four, is supposed to be excellent as well!

Motherless Child by Glen Hirshberg. A gritty vampire tale that’s got really good reviews.

Bird Box by Josh Malerman. This is pretty short, but I hear it’s powerful and terrifying.

The Lesser Dead by Christopher Buehlman. Vampires in New York City in the 1970s? You bet!

Giveaways:

The Spooktacular Giveaway Hop is a hop I enter every year, and I’ll be giving away something…spooky! Not sure what just yet, but check back on the 15th.

And of course, my monthly book review giveaway, where one international winner will get to choose a book I reviewed in September.

I hope you have many great reads in your future! Let me know what your plans are for the month.