It’s time for a look at my AUGUST reading life!
It’s time for another wrap-up/haul post — and some fun stats!
August was another very hot, very busy month, but hey, at least summer is almost over and cooler temps should be coming soon! Plus, August was a really good reading month: I read every single day and I had a LOT of 5-star reads, as you’ll see. I buddy read a ton of stuff and read a lot of ARCs (not as many as I intended to, but still). I don’t have a ton of updates to give for August other than the bookish ones, so let’s get on with it!
What I read:
(each title link will direct you to my review for more thoughts!)
emoji key:
✨ review copy → 💞 buddy/group read → 🔁 re-read → 🎧 audiobook → 🍰 graphic novel/manga
🤷♀️ TBR jar → 🗓️ 2023 TBR → 🌻 seasonal TBR
- The Serpent & the Wings of Night // Carissa Broadbent 💞
- Six Scorched Roses // Carissa Broadbent 💞
- House of Sky and Breath // Sarah J. Maas 💞🎧
- King of Scars // Leigh Bardugo 💞
- Getting it On with Gargoyles // Hazel Mack 💞
- 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered // Sadie Hartmann ✨
- Thornhedge // T. Kingfisher ✨
- Seed // Ania Ahlborn 💞🎧
- The Midnight Meat Train // Clive Barker 💞
- The Encounter: The Graphic Novel // K.A. Applegate & Chris Grine 🍰
- Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”: The Authorized Graphic Adaptation // Shirley Jackson & Miles Hyman 🍰
- Delicate Condition // Danielle Valentine ✨💞🎧
- OH FUCK OH FUCK IT HURTS: A Collection of Medical Horror // Ruth Anna Evans & Rik Hoskin ✨
- Nothing but the Rain // Naomi Salman ✨🎧
- The Long Walk // Stephen King 🎧🌻
- Dracula Daily // Bram Stoker & Matthew Kirkland ✨
- Dracula // Bram Stoker
- Creepy Cat, Vol. 4 // Cotton Valent 🍰
- The Thing Under Your Bed // Stephen Kozeniewski ✨
- Role Playing // Cathy Yardley 💞🎧
- Stinetinglers 2 // R.L. Stine ✨🎧
- The Sprite and the Gardener // Rii Abrego 🍰
- VenCo // Cherie Dimaline 💞🎧
- nothing this month!
VenCo is here and in the 2-star section because I did DNF it, but I read most of it, so I gave it a rating anyways.
- VenCo // Cherie Dimaline 💞🎧
- Paradise-1 // David Wellington ✨🎧🌻
- Party Games // Jon Athan 🤷♀️
And now, for some of my favorite recent hauls:
- The Serpent & the Wings of Night, The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King, and Six Scorched Roses // Carissa Broadbent (hardcover purchases)
- Pestilence, War, Famine, and Death // Laura Thalassa (paperback purchases – new covers)
- Masters of Death and One For My Enemy // Olivie Blake (Illumicrate editions)
- The Silver Scream // Roy Merkin & Ice Nine Kills (hardcover purchase)
- Drowning // T.J. Newman (hardcover purchase)
- Suckerville // Chris Sorensen (kindle freebie)
- I Found Puppets Living In My Apartment Walls // Ben Farthing (ebook purchase)
- 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered // Sadie Hartman (finished review copy)
- The September House // Carissa Orlando (finished review copy)
- After the Forest // Kell Woods (audio review copy)
- Murder Road // Simone St. James (eARC)
- What Monstrous Gods // Rosamund Hodge (eARC)
- Silent Key // Laurel Hightower (eARC)
- The Warm Hands of Ghosts // Katherine Arden (eARC)
- A Haunting On the Hill // Elizabeth Hand (eARC)
How was your month? What was your favorite book you read or hauled, or what was something nice that happened in your life?
— destiny ♥
Reg @ BookishInBed
September 5, 2023It looks like you had a great month. So many 5 stars! I read a lot of e-arcs last month. I think my favorite read was The Drowning Woman.
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
September 9, 2023Thank you, I really did! Way to go on reading so many of your eARCs, that is awesome!!! 🥳
Reg @ BookishInBed
September 18, 2023Thank you! I’ve been pushing through a lot of them and also finding some new ones I wouldn’t normally pick up. I do want to go read some books that aren’t e-arcs as well. It’s just been a big focus.
mistysbookspace
September 5, 2023The Serpent and the Wings of Night was my favorite book of August as well!!
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
September 9, 2023It was soooo freaking good, I can’t get over how much I loved it!
Tammy
September 6, 2023I’m glad you loved Delicate Condition, what a crazy book, right?
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
September 9, 2023It really was!! I hadn’t read a book from that author in a LONG time – I read a YA book of hers under the Danielle Vega name years ago and didn’t like it, so I was nervous to give her another try, but I loved Delicate Condition so much that now I’m really excited to check out more of her backlog!
tasya @ the literary huntress
September 7, 2023Ooh I have What Monstrous Gods on my TBR, I hope you’ll enjoy it and looking forward to hear your thoughts!
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
September 9, 2023I hope we both love it! I put it on my “anticipated” shelf what feels like FOREVER ago so I can’t believe it’s finally almost here!
dbsguidetothegalaxy
September 8, 2023Always love when there’s a month with mostly 5 star reads! Makes one feel good about the books (even if there’s a dnf here and there lol).
I’m sorry,they found puppets WHERE ok I’ll look at that.
My sister and I are eying The September House as a buddy read so I’ll wait for your thoughts and see.
Excited for Silent Key! It looks good!
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
September 9, 2023Right?! It’s such a good feeling! And I’m over here snickering at your comment about the puppets title 😂😂
Caro @ bookcheshirecat
September 16, 2023I’m honestly SO ready for Fall 🍂 I still need to read House of Sky and Breath, I’m glad to see that you enjoyed it so much!! I also need to read Rule of Wolves – the sequel to King of Scars 😅
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
October 7, 2023I’m so so so happy Fall has arrived – and the temps to match it are finally showing up here, too!