Oh October, what a gem of a month you were! It finally felt like Fall, the world bursting with that patent October brilliance, and the reading was good. This time of year has long been my favorite, and all the ideas and brainstorms are coming my way as we get ready for hibernation season. I have a feeling the next few months will be an adventure, but before we get there, let’s look back.

📱 The Thoroughbreds | Elin Hilderbrand & Shelby Cunningham | ⭐⭐⭐⭐
📱 Twig’s Traveling Tomes | Gryffin Murphy | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1/2
📖 Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel | Lucy Foley | ⭐⭐⭐⭐
📱 Austenland | Shannon Hale | ⭐⭐⭐⭐
📱 Welcome to the Kokoro Cat Clinic | Syou Ishida | ⭐⭐⭐⭐
📖 The Murder of Roger Ackroyd | Agatha Christie | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1/2
🎧 Magic and Mischief at the Wayside Hotel | Elizabeth Everett | ⭐⭐⭐⭐
📖 Revenge, Served Royal | Celeste Connally | ⭐⭐⭐⭐
📱 Midnight in Austenland | Shannon Hale | ⭐⭐⭐⭐

It looks like I read a lot in October, but a few of these were started in September and just needed to be finished. That said, I am surprised how much I did manage to read – complete with reading on my Kindle every day for the entire month! There was a bizarre mix of genres, but clearly everything was an enjoyable read. There was a lapse in the Throne of Glass buddy reading, but I picked up The Murder of Roger Ackroyd as a buddy read with another friend. Isn’t it lovely reading with someone?

You may remember seeing Twig’s Traveling Tomes on my Fall wishlist. I am happy to report it is precisely as adorable and fun as anticipated, and Everett Sharp gave me all the Flynn Rider vibes: a very good thing indeed. I’m looking forward to reading more stories set in this universe. And the reread of Shannon Hale’s Austenland books is complete, now waiting for my Libby loan of Christmas in Austenland to come available.

Listening:
Y’all. After such a promising start to Hollywood Ending, I had to DNF at 37%. The past traumas of the main characters were too much for me – why is nobody talking about the trigger/content warnings? I opted to post them in a DNF review on Goodreads, if you’re curious. Thankfully my next audiobook attempt was successful, and I seem to have gotten the listening mojo back.

Watching:
I had a feeling as the nights got longer, the viewing would increase. While I’m also reading a lot of evenings, I’ve also indulged in a little watching on nights Mr had to work late. We also managed a little bit of weekend viewing together, which is always lovely.

• 📺 Little House on the Prairie (Season 1) | Netflix
  We finally started the new Little House. Have they changed the narrative? Quite a bit. Is it still enjoyable, evoking all kinds of nostalgic longing to reread the books? You bet.
• 🎬 The Devil Wears Prada (2006) | Netflix
  It has been a hot minute since I last watched this one, and I knew I wanted a refresher before indulging in the second.
• 🎬 The Devil Wears Prada 2 (2026) | Library DVD
  Was this predictable and fairly low on plot? Yep. Did I enjoy the gratuitous sequel, set 20 years later? Also yep.
• 📺 The Great British Baking Show (2026) | Netflix
  It’s time for a new season of Bakes, and I’m so here for it! I try to let a small amount of episodes build up and then binge, but I ran through those so quickly I’m now watching live. This is the perfect show for cozy season, and I am enjoying Nigella as the new judge.

On the Blog:
Obviously the “theme” of the month was recapping our trip to Washington DC, including the food. It should be noted that we ate extremely well at home as well. There was also a bit of Christmas flavor, between the new releases I’m excited about and the first check-in post. As if Washington wasn’t enough of an adventure, we indulged in some other shenanigans as well.

I have a list of things I want to post about in the next month or so, and hopefully they make it from the list to the blog this time. There shouldn’t be another trip to recount, so that will free up some posting. {I do hope you enjoyed sharing our adventures!} Shenanigans are likely to happen however, as well as holiday decorating and general festive planning.

What was your favorite read and/or watch and/or moment of October?
What are you most looking forward to in November?
As I’m planning the next few months, what’s something you’d like to see on this blog?