September Wrap-Up

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September is the month that shall not be spoken about. It came and went and mostly included a lot of stress and depression for me. So I can’t wait for a new month to start because I tell myself that surely, October has to be better. Between studying for the biochemistry exam I kept talking about and being a general blob, I didn’t do a lot of reading. Subsequently, this is another very short wrap-up! Let’s go.

The Books I Read in September

Last Gamer Standing – Katie Zhao

I am continuing my Katie Zhao readathon with her most recent release!

Last Gamer Standing follows 12-year-old Reyna Cheng who wants nothing more than be a professional player of Dayhold, a VR battle royale game. But because the gaming world is rife with sexism and racism she plays as The RuiNar, a male avatar. When she manages to compete in the Junior Dayhold Tournament with $10k on the line, suddenly someone threatens to doxx her.

This book was so much fun! It has plenty of action and I loved getting glimpses into the gaming world of Dayhold. Reyna is a great main character, she’s resourceful and stubborn and I especially appreciated her complex relationship with her parents.

Needless to say, I am a Katie Zhao stan and will read everything she ever writes because her books are just that good.

Related: My Review of How We Fall Apart by Katie Zhao

The Martian – Andy Weir

It is as predictable as sunrise and sunset: when I’m feeling down, I reread The Martian.

At this point, I should probably stop mentioning it in my wrap-ups but to be quite honest, I love this book and it’s a good indication of my mental state. Actually, I am finishing my current reread of the audiobook as I type this! I’ll still count it for September because well, I read 99% of the book in September.

Last night, I carefully looked at the rabbit hole that is The Martian fanfiction on AO3. And I was not disappointed. There’s a surprising amount of MCU x The Martian crossover fic which I blame entirely on the fact that Sebastian Stan is in the movie. Not that I’m complaining, I will definitely read the 474k word MCU x Martian fanfic I found because what else am I going to do with my life?

I joked on Twitter yesterday that I might as well replace my October TBR with exclusively Martian fanfiction and…I’m not saying that’s what I’m doing, but it’s also not not what I’m doing, ya know?

Posts I Wrote

As always, here’s a neat little overview of the posts I wrote in September so you can conveniently check out any that you may have missed!

• My August Wrap-Up
• Review: Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean
• 10 Books to Read This Autumn | My Autumn TBR
• Goodreads Spring Cleaning Challenge – My 10 #Goodreadance2021 Goals

Posts I Loved

Of course, it wouldn’t be a monthly Wrap-Up without me shouting out some posts I loved! I’ve been terrible at blog hopping this month and I hope that I have more time and energy in October!

• Kate over on Your Tita Kate wrote a post recommending books for each song of Ben&Ben’s album Kuwaderno which introduced me to a great album (seriously, please go listen to it it’s so good!) I otherwise wouldn’t have heard about! I really loved the idea of matching songs with book recommendations and had a wonderful time reading Kate’s post while listening to the album.
• Naemi from A Book Owl’s Corner wrote a post reacting to 5 star reviews of books she hates!
• Kate from Reading Through Infinity did the End of Summer Book Tag (and tagged me, I promise I’ll get around to it soon!)

Some Closing Words

September had a lot of bad vibes, but it also brought me moments of joy. Remember that biochem exam I kept talking about everywhere? Yeah, I passed! With a 1,7 which is like an A- or B+ in different grade systems, I think? Either way, it’s a really good grade and I’m so relieved I won’t have to retake the exam!

I also spent a wonderfully sunny day in a city close to where one of my closest friends grew up. We browsed through shops, had great food and good conversations and it was so nice to get outside of my normal routine.

So as I am preparing for the coming months which promise to still be stressful, I try to keep in mind that there are always moments full of love and joy to be had if I’m willing to take the time to look for them.

How was your September? Did you have a good reading month or are you in a slump like me?

I hope you have a lovely day,

If you like my work and would like to support me, you can buy me a coffee!