I got a lot of reading done in August, and I hope September is fairly productive as well. But 16 books productive? We’ll have to see. I need to get The Appearance of Power formatted, so that takes precedence, but I should still be able to get some reading in too. I have a broken elbow, so I will be prioritizing reading e-books early in the month, formatting mid month, and reading my paper copies toward the end of the month. Extensive typing is still slow and holding a paper book is too difficult right now.
So what’s on the Tier One priority list in September? I have five high priority books.
- The Hexologists by Josiah Bancroft
This fantasy is my pick for my in person fantasy book club for September. My book club pick always makes Tier One. Every other month we choose our own book. One additional plus is that it meets a new reading prompt for a title in the format of “The ____.” It’s the start of a series. Iz and Warren are the Hexologists, and they solve magical problems for their clients. In this story, it is a mystery involving the king. I picked it up at my Kauai writer’s conference and I am looking forward to it. I have a paper copy, so I’ll be reading this later in the month.
- The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11 by Garrett M. Graff
This choice fits a reading challenge this month – one I need to finish by September 14. And of course, given that it is the 25th anniversary of 9/11 in just a couple short weeks, reading it will be an excellent way to honor those lost during that horrible day. I’ve only read two other books that touched on the event, both memoirs. Now is the right time to think back to what happened. Someday I hope to visit the memorial sites. I am hoping I get it from the library in time.
- The Woman in Suite 11 by Ruth Ware
This book also fits some reading challenges, and it gets me a thriller from a favorite author. It’s not been out that long, and I like to keep up with Ware’s work. This is also a sequel, and she usually does stand alones, so I am interested to see how that goes. Her character, Lo, is pulled into intrigue that leaves her racing across Europe with a woman she may not be able to trust. Bring on the popcorn.
- The Summer War by Naomi Novik
This is a fantasy novella with a fairytale vibe about a girl trying to undo a curse she accidentally put on her brother. It fits reading challenges for me and it is short. I haven’t read anything by Novik before, and I’ve heard good things, so a novella is a great introduction.
- Unreasonable Women: Three Stories of Violence, Imprisonment, and Extraordinary Survival by Justine van der Leune
This is a true crime nonfiction using the stories of three women to examine the justice system. I used to read quite a bit of true crime, but not as much now for many years. I like the idea that this is looking more at the justice system than catching the criminal. It does fit a reading prompt for me in the Goodreads summer challenge, and I want to complete the category. This looks quite thought provoking.
Here’s the Tier One Graphic.
For Tier Two, I have another five books. I hope to finish most of them.
This is a new FBI thriller from a favorite author. It is the next in a series, and I like to stay current. It is due to release on 9/11, but with this author it is not uncommon for releases to get pushed back. I will try to read it if it releases in September as scheduled. I am interested to see where he takes his Seattle based FBI team in this adventure. The last one was pretty mind blowing!
- The Deepest Lake by Andromeda Romano-Lax
This is another thriller. It is set at a luxury memoir writing retreat. A woman is investigating how her daughter died at a previous event. It was ruled an accident, but the mother turns up disturbing evidence that there was more going on. I’ve missed reading thrillers in the last month, and I hope I have picked a few good ones. I haven’t read anything by this author, but the premise has caught me.
This is a gas lamp fantasy about a man who is forced to figure out how to tame the sentient house he’s inherited. It’s locked him in and won’t let him go. He gets help from an expert in matters like this. It sounds like an intriguing mix, maybe of cozy fantasy, light romance, historical fiction, and mystery. What a mash up. It meets a couple reading prompts (including one of my latest, a title in the format of: (A) ____ of ____”), and I have to at least check it out, but it isn’t a huge priority.
- Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
This is another novella, which makes it likelier that I can finish it. It meets a reading challenge prompt, and it would be nice to finish it off, but it isn’t a must read. The book is a “prequel” to Jane Eyre (by a different author) that focuses on the history of Mr. Rochester’s mad wife in the attic. I cannot locate an e-book copy anywhere, so I am borrowing a paper copy from the library. Because of my broken elbow, I’ll likely attempt my read a little later in the month. I am not certain this is the book for me, but in the interests of broadening my horizons, genuine curiosity about a prequel for Jane Eyre, and because of that reading prompt, I will give it a go, but if I don’t like it, I reserve the right to DNF.
- Letter from Japan by Marie Kondo
I had tried to get to this book earlier in the year, but with my father’s illness, it got put on the back burner due to lack of time. I am hoping I will have time for it in September. If I have to guess, this may be the book I’ll be least likely to complete from this tier unless Wide Sargasso Sea is a DNF. The main box it checks is that it is on my 26 in 2026 list, so I’d like to get to it by the end of the year, but I have a few more months to work it in if it doesn’t fit now, or if I only get partway through. In it, Marie Kondo talks about the Japanese traditions that have inspired her world view. I like Kondo and her “spark joy” philosophy and I have read multiple books set in Japan this year, so I am looking forward to immersing myself in it.
Here’s the Tier Two graphic.
Next is my Miscellaneous Tier with six books. This group includes my poetry pick, my cookbook pick, my cat books, and a children’s book. Except for the cookbook, they are all short, easy reads.
- The Book of Psalms from The Bible
Every month I am picking a book of poetry to read. This month I am tackling the Psalms. I have read many of the individual psalms, but I haven’t read every single one. I’d like to knock that off my literary bucket list. The bonus here is that if I can’t finish Keeper of Enchanted Rooms, this also meets the prompt for a title in the format of “The ____ of ____.”
- Winnie the Pooh by AA Milne
I am picking this up for a few reasons. Winnie the Pooh is 100 years old now, and on the centennial, a re-read is a fun way to honor this classic. I also have a Pooh themed reading challenge and it fits that one perfectly. Finally, I haven’t read it since college – I actually used an excerpt for one of my forensics competitions for the University of Minnesota. It will bring back great memories. Plus, it is short and it will be a great palate cleanser.
- Review of My Cat by Tanner Ringerud
I collect cat books and I like to re-read them periodically. This has been in my collection for a while. It is a humorous book about holding our cats accountable for their bad behavior. I adore my cats, but they do get the zoomies at three a.m. They try to catch the finch flying by our window. They throw up on inappropriate surfaces. It’s fun to relate to others also dealing with our fur kids’ foibles. This is another back up if I can’t finish Keeper of Enchanted Rooms or The Book of Psalms. It also meets the prompt for a title in the format of “(The) ____ of ____.”
- I am Maru by mugumogu
This is a re-read for me. This is another work in my collection of cat books. Maru has been an internet phenomenon for years. He passed away recently, and revisiting this book will be nostalgic. The photography is great as well. It will be a short read – likely under an hour.
- The Misadventures of Grumpy Cat and Pokey by Ben McCool, Royal McGraw, Elliott Serrano, Ben Fisher, Steve Uy, Ken Haeser, Tavis Maiden, Agnes Garbowska
I’ve added this kids’ comic on at the last minute to fit a reading prompt for a book with a title in the format of: “The (or A) ___ of ____ and ____ .” I have too many other books on my list this month to add a chunky fantasy novel with a title in this format (think “A Court of Thorns and Roses” and myriad others), but I am still stubborn enough not to give up on this prompt. So I looked for something with the format and found a short option that I am still interested in reading. This is a 100 page comic book about the internet phenomenon, Grumpy Cat, and her brother. (Did you know Grumpy was female? Did you know she had a brother? Did you know her real name was Tardar Sauce?) I love me some internet cats. Grumpy was always a favorite. She passed away in 2019 at the age of seven due to her health problems from feline dwarfism. I enjoyed seeing her in person and getting a photo with her when she was in Seattle for a book tour. This will be a fun and quick way to meet the prompt, and I get to add this comic to my cat book collection.
- Taking out the Carbage by DJ Foodie
Every month I am reading one of my cookbooks to look for healthy recipes. This is a behemoth. A true giant with several hundred lower carb recipes. I didn’t have time for it in May, so I am trying again. If I can’t get through it all in September, I think it will be fair to count it for my October cookbook pick as well, given its size and how many other books I am trying to finish. In fact, now that I’ve thought of it, that’s what I’ll do.
Here’s the Miscellaneous Tier graphic.
Finally, I have some August wrap up. I am still working my way through The Claiming, by JA Neilsen because I didn’t finish it due to my broken elbow (harder to turn those physical pages). Additionally, I have a few books that I have been reading a bit over time until I finish them. These include:
- The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan
- The Jossing Affair by JL Oakley
- Ten Tales by Edgar Allan Poe
- Writing Archetypal Character Arcs by KM Weiland
- The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron
As always, I may have bitten off more than I can chew. My list of books that are still in progress and not complete from past months is getting larger, so I need to face the fact that some of the September choices may need to get pushed to 2027 if I can’t get to them this month. I’d like to wrap up those earlier books by the end of the year instead of DNF’ing them. We’re in the home stretch for 2026.
If you have a favorite read to recommend, or a favorite book challenge for 2026, be sure to comment!
Thanks for reading!
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