Books Read in September

I've fallen a bit behind in reviews and my monthly summary, but that's for a good reason - we've finally been able to travel a little bit and squeeze in some vacation time! Our attempts have still been thwarted by weather and shortened from what we'd planned, but we've had some brief respites in September and October. So, here is my September reading summary, a bit late. It was an excellent reading month, with a focus on dark stuff for the annual R.I.P. Challenge, which I love. Here's what I finished in September:

• Dark Saturday by Nicci French (UK) - adult novel on audio
• The Sleepwalker by Chris Bohjalian (VT) - adult novel
• The Rain Watcher by Tatiana De Rosnay (France) - adult novel, reviewed for Shelf Awareness

• Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter (AK) - teen/YA novel on audio
• Still Life by Louise Penny (Canada) - adult novel
• City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab (Scotland) - middle-grade novel

• Waking Gods by Sylvain Neuvel (NY, UK) - adult novel
• The Hidden Witch by Molly Knox Ostertag - middle-grade graphic novel

Eight books in all is a very good reading month for me, and they were all fiction, with five for adults and three for middle-grade/YA. Two were listened to on audio, and one was a graphic novel, so it was a nice mix. And though all but one (The Rain Watcher) were for the R.I.P. Challenge, they covered a variety of genres and types, from classic mystery to thriller to sci fi to ghost stories to witches! Choosing a favorite is tough because I enjoyed them all. Waking Gods is probably my favorite, with an honorable mention for City of Ghosts. In both cases, I am dying to read the sequels!

Progress in 2018 Reading Challenges:
This is my favorite part of my monthly summary - updating my Reading Challenges! I read 4 books from my own shelves for my Mount TBR Reading Challenge, bringing my total-to-date to 20. R.I.P. Challenge is always good for whittling down my TBR piles. For the Monthly Motif Reading Challenge, September was Don't Turn Out the Light, so almost all of my books counted! I put City of Ghosts down for that one. No new books for the Back to the Classics Challenge, and just one for the 2018 Badass Books Challenge:A popular author's first book (Still Life by Louise Penny) . I traveled to the UK, France, Canada, and Scotland for my Travel the World in Books Reading Challenge (though I'd read books set in all those countries earlier this year, too). For my 2018 Literary Escapes Challenge, I added just one new state, Vermont (you can always count on Chris Bohjalian for a VT setting). And I kicked off my RIP Challenge with seven wonderfully dark books!
 
Finally, Bookish Bingo hosted by Chapter Break - not really a challenge per se, but a fun game that I play each month. I filled in 18 squares in September - a decent Bingo month for me!

Spaces filled in:

Dark Saturday - audio book
The Sleepwalker - favorite author, shelf love (TBR)
The Rain Watcher - not in a series, read a physical book
Not If I Save You First - free book, enemies to friends/lovers, adventure/action
Still Life - book recommended to you, library book
City of Ghosts - historical, map, ship or plane
Waking Gods - mates/crew/friends/squad, in a series
The Hidden Witch - set on a school campus, magic/sorcery

Free Space

What was your favorite book read in September?