Spell the Month in Books is a monthly meme hosted by Jana at Reviews from the Stacks. To participate, find a book title that starts with each letter in the month’s name, make a list, share your link, and that’s it! You can share anytime by the end of the month. Some months have additional themes, but feel free to participate however you’d like!
There isn’t a theme set for September (or at least not as far as I’ve seen)… so I’m choosing my own. Since September is traditionally the start of the school year (although where I live, school already started up again in August), my theme for this month is books with a school setting.
Here are my SEPTEMBER books:
S:
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
E:
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
P:
Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
T:
True Biz by Sara Nović
E:
Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger
M:
The Magicians by Lev Grossman
B:
The Break-Up Artist by Philip Siegel
E:
Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
R:
Rules at the School by the Sea by Jenny Colgan
Happy September!
If you spelled the month in books, please leave me a link to your post — I’d love to see it!
First Lines Friday is a weekly feature for book lovers created by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here’s how to join in:
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page.
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first.
Finally… reveal the book!
Today’s line are from a gorgeous book that I bought months ago but haven’t started yet:
To the best of her knowledge, Vera was twenty-two years old. And by the time she finished tying the laces of her running trainers on this early October morning, she had ten hours and fourteen minutes remaining of the life she knew in a little town called Glastonbury in the southwest of England.
So what’s the book?
The Once and Future Queen by Paula Lafferty Published 2025 512 pages
Synopsis:
Vera always knew she didn’t fit in. When she learns that she is meant to be in another time, she leaps at the chance to embrace a new life in a world of valor, intrigue, and unexpected magic in this bold and romantic retelling of Arthurian legend . . .
22-year-old Vera is at a crossroads: waiting tables, grieving her previous relationship, and jogging aimlessly each morning as if toward an uncertain future. Then an odd man shows up at her workplace, insisting that she was once the legendary Queen Guinevere of Camelot, and that her lost memories hold the key to changing both the past and the present. Somehow, it all feels like the direction she’s been looking for. But when she asks the mysterious man to tell her more about Lancelot, Arthur, and a faithless queen, he can only say that much of what she’s heard about Camelot is wrong. The truth, he claims, is something she must see for herself.
After jumping through a portal in Glastonbury’s historic center, Vera is not prepared for what she finds. Magic is everywhere, but a curse on the kingdom means it dwindles every day. She has no idea how to perform a queen’s duties. Her fast friendship with Lancelot sets gossip flowing, and the stranger she must call “husband” often refuses to meet her eye. Arthur is a puzzle: cold, forbidding, and, while angry to her face, keeps leaving secret tokens of tenderness in her chambers. Worst of all, Vera’s memories—and the answers locked within them—show no signs of returning. If Vera is truly destined to save Camelot, she’ll have to trust her instincts. And her king will have to trust her . . .
I’ll admit that what first drew me to this book is how absolutely stunning the hardcover edition is!
So yes, I bought myself a copy when it was released last year… and just haven’t found the right moment to start it. With a sequel scheduled for release in January 2027, I’m committing to reading this book by the end of 2026. The timeslip elements sounds right up my alley!
Back to the beginning… for me! A year ago, I participated in the Birthstone Book Covers meme — hosted by Leslie at Books Are the New Black — for the first time, and liked it so much that I’ve kept it going every month since.
And now, I’m back to where I started, ready for even more birthstone book covers! The challenge going forward will be to see if I can come up with NEW books to feature…
Want to join in this fun monthly meme?
The rules are simple:
Mention the creator (Leslie @ Books Are The New Black ) and link back so she can see your post! Pick 5+ book covers that match the current month’s Birthstone. Have fun!
August’s birthstone is peridot. According to the American Gem Society:
Though peridot is widely recognized for its brilliant lime green glow, the origin of this gemstone’s name is unclear. Most scholars agree that the word “peridot” is derived from the Arabic faridat, which means “gem;” however, some believe it’s rooted in the Greek word peridona, meaning “giving plenty.” Perhaps that’s why peridot was, according to lore, associated with prosperity and good fortune.
Peridot is the rare gem-quality variety of the common mineral olivine, which forms deep inside the Earth’s mantle and is brought to the surface by volcanoes. In Hawaii, peridot once symbolized the tears of Pele, the volcano goddess of fire who controls the flow of lava. Rarely, peridot is also found inside meteorites.
Peridot’s signature green color comes from the composition of the mineral itself—rather than from trace impurities, as with many gemstones. That’s why this is one of few gemstones that only comes in one color, though shades may vary from yellowish-green to olive to brownish-green, depending on how much iron is present.
First Lines Friday is a weekly feature for book lovers created by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here’s how to join in:
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page.
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first.
Finally… reveal the book!
Today’s line are from a contemporary romance that’s been sitting on my TBR for a few months now:
Of the many psychological tricks Layla Bailey had played on herself in preparation for this — only her second trip ever to her favorite… well, was it better to say, former favorite? onetime favorite? nostalgic, painful, heartbreaking favorite?… city in the world — typing positive affirmations into her translation app was possibly the most personally embarrassing.
So what’s the book?
The Paris Match by Kate Clayborn Published 2026 454 pages
Synopsis:
A woman tests the limits of her so-called amicable divorce when she flies to Paris for the destination wedding of her former sister-in-law, only to butt heads with the deliciously gruff best man, in a poignant and romantic novel from Kate Clayborn.
Physician Layla Bailey has spent over a year telling herself she’s moved on from a painful but amicable divorce from her college sweetheart. Staying friends with her ex seemed like the mature thing to do, but when Layla is invited to her former sister-in-law’s destination wedding in Paris—where Layla once spent her own romantic honeymoon—she knows her commitment to maturity might be her worst enemy…especially since her ex isn’t attending alone.
The only thing that could make the week more difficult is getting through it without the distraction of the wedding…. But when what Layla thought was a harmless conversation about the choices of her younger self leads to the bride getting cold feet, Layla finds herself facing down the groom’s mysterious, taciturn best man, Griffin, who will do anything to make sure this wedding happens.
Since she broke it, Griff demands she help him fix it. Going along with his plan to alleviate the engaged couple’s doubts seems like Layla’s best chance at maintaining a good relationship with a family she once called her own. But as she learns more about the past heartbreak that’s driving Griff to help his friend, she gets closer and closer to confronting the true depth of her own pain…while finding herself more and more willing to risk it all again for Griff.
I’ve been on the fence about picking this up, mainly because it’s longer and seemingly a bit heavier than I tend to prefer when it comes to romance reading. If you’ve read this book already, do you recommend it? And if not, does this sounds like something you’d enjoy?
First Lines Friday is a weekly feature for book lovers created by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here’s how to join in:
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page.
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first.
Finally… reveal the book!
Today’s FLF selection is from a book I recently added to my Kindle library (but haven’t started yet):
As the crowd screams, all Henri thinks is that he’s going to be in so much trouble when his parents find out. He closes his eyes, trying his best to undo what happened. Unwind his day. End up anywhere but here.
So what’s the book?
The Fox and the Devil by Kiersten White Published 2026 350 pages
Synopsis:
Anneke has a complicated relationship with her father, Abraham Van Helsing—doctor, scientist, and madman devoted to the study of vampires—until the night she comes home to find him murdered, with a surreally beautiful woman looming over his body. A woman who leaves no trace behind, other than the dreams and nightmares that now plague Anneke every night.
Spurred by her desire for vengeance and armed with the latest forensic and investigatory techniques, Anneke puts together a team of detectives to catch this mysterious serial killer. Because her father isn’t the only inexplicable dead body. There’s a trail of victims across Europe, and Anneke is certain they’re all connected.
But during the years spent relentlessly hunting the killer, Anneke keeps crucial evidence to herself: infuriatingly coy letters, addressed only to her, occasionally soaked in blood, and always signed Diavola.
The closer Anneke gets to her devil, though, the less sense the world makes. Maybe her father wasn’t a madman after all. Diavola might be something much worse than a serial killer . . . and much harder to destroy. Yet as Anneke unearths more of Diavola’s tragic past, she suspects there’s still a heart somewhere in that undead body.
Earlier in the week, I shared a post with my list of books for the newest Classics Club Spin challenge (see it here), and today, this spin’s number was announced. (For those keeping track, it’s CCSpin #45, and for me personally, #17!)
Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that corresponds to the “spin” number that comes up.
For CCSpin #45, the lucky number is:
And that means I’ll be reading:
Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier Published 1936
Synopsis:
The coachman tried to warn her away from the ruined, forbidding place on the rainswept Cornish coast. But young Mary Yellan chose instead to honor her mother’s dying request that she join her frightened Aunt Patience and huge, hulking Uncle Joss Merlyn at Jamaica Inn.
From her first glimpse on that raw November eve, she could sense the inn’s dark power. But never did Mary dream that she would become hopelessly ensnared in the vile, villainous schemes being hatched within its crumbling walls—or that a handsome, mysterious stranger would so incite her passions… tempting her to love a man whom she dares not trust.
That’s two Daphne du Maurier books in a row for my Classics Club spins, and I couldn’t be happier! Granted, I would have been excited to read any of the books on my list… but after being completely enthralled by Frenchman’s Creek, I was eager to explore more of this author’s books, so this is a terrific spin result for me!
What do you think of my spin book this time around?
I’ll be back to share my thoughts before October 4th!
Are you participating in this Classics Club Spin? If so, what book will you be reading?
Here’s my list of 20 titles for Classics Club Spin #44:
The House on the Strand by Daphne DuMaurier
Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir by R. A. Dick
This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
White Fang by Jack London
Anna and Her Daughters by D. E. Stevenson
Pied Piper by Nevil Shute
Eight Cousins / Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott
Pat of Silver Bush by L. M. Montgomery
Peony by Pearl Buck
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
Frederica by Georgette Heyer
The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
Dear Hugo by Molly Clavering
Tevye the Dairymanand Motl the Cantor’s Son by Sholem Aleichem
First Lines Friday is a weekly feature for book lovers created by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here’s how to join in:
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page.
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first.
Finally… reveal the book!
Here are the opening lines from a book that’s been on my shelf… unread… for far too long:
I don’t like to start with an apology — there’s probably even a rule against it, like never ending a sentence with a preposition — but after reading over the thirty pages I’ve written so far, I feel like I have to. It’s about a certain word I keep using. I learned a lot of four-letter words from my mother and used them from an early age (as you will find out), but this is one with five letters.
So what’s the book?
Later by Stephen King Published 2021 248 pages
Synopsis:
The son of a struggling single mother, Jamie Conklin just wants an ordinary childhood. But Jamie is no ordinary child. Born with an unnatural ability his mom urges him to keep secret, Jamie can see what no one else can see and learn what no one else can learn. But the cost of using this ability is higher than Jamie can imagine – as he discovers when an NYPD detective draws him into the pursuit of a killer who has threatened to strike from beyond the grave.
Later is Stephen King at his finest, a terrifying and touching story of innocence lost and the trials that test our sense of right and wrong. With echoes of King’s classic novel It, Later is a powerful, haunting, unforgettable exploration of what it takes to stand up to evil in all the faces it wears.
I bought a paperback copy of Later when it first came out, and it’s been on the shelf right above my desk ever since. Have you read it? And if not, does it sound like something you’d enjoy?
Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that corresponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be the Classics Club’s spin #45, and my 17th time participating!
Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:
On Sunday 16th August we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 4th October, 2026.
We’ll check in here on the 4th October to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!
What’s Next?
Go to your blog.
Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday 16th August 2026.
We’ll announce a number from 1-20.
Read that book by 4th October.
I’m always excited when a new spin rolls around! For spin #45, I’ll be sticking with my interest in 20th century fiction, so that’s mainly how I’ve focused my list. Where will the spin take me this time? We’ll find out in a few days!
Here’s my list of 20 classics for the next Classics Club Spin:
The House on the Strand by Daphne DuMaurier
Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir by R. A. Dick
This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
White Fang by Jack London
Anna and Her Daughters by D. E. Stevenson
Pied Piper by Nevil Shute
Eight Cousins / Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott
Pat of Silver Bush by L. M. Montgomery
Peony by Pearl Buck
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
Frederica by Georgette Heyer
The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
Dear Hugo by Molly Clavering
Tevye the Dairymanand Motl the Cantor’s Son by Sholem Aleichem
Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier
Sunset Song by Lewis Grassic Gibbon
Under the Rainbow by Susan Scarlett
Wish me luck! I’ll be back on August 16th to reveal my spin result!
First Lines Friday is a weekly feature for book lovers created by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here’s how to join in:
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page.
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first.
Finally… reveal the book!
Here’s a long-ish opening that I found really amusing… so I didn’t want to cut anything!
LYSSA HEFTED THE bloodstained burlap sack and shoved her way through the door of the Kingmaker, tracking sooty slush on the expensive carpet. She bypassed the line of patrons waiting to be seated, ignoring the ripple of protests that followed in her wake, and made her way to where a pinch-faced headwaiter stood by the entrance to the main dining room. He glanced her way with an automatic, “I’m sorry, miss, you’ll have to…” then faltered, his expression landing somewhere between disgust and horror as the sight of her sank in. The trio of ladies he had been speaking to turned—as well as they could in forty pounds of petticoats, layered skirts, steel-boned corsets, and starched collars, anyway—and glared at her. Their eyes skated right over the bloody bag in Lyssa’s arms, seeming to find her mud-spattered pants and unkempt braids far more objectionable.
It was too bad no one had ever figured out how to feed off the disdain of the rich; the downtrodden would never go hungry again.
So what’s the book?
Kill the Beast by Serra Swift Published 2025 309 pages
Synopsis:
The night Lyssa Cadogan’s brother was murdered by a faerie-made monster known as the Beast, she made him a promise: she would find a way to destroy the immortal creature and avenge his death. For thirteen years, she has been hunting faeries and the abominations they created. But in all that time, the one Beast she is most desperate to find has never resurfaced.
Until she meets Alderic Casimir de Laurent, a melodramatic dandy with a coin purse bigger than his brain. Somehow, he has found the monster’s lair, and—even more surprising—retrieved one of its claws. A claw Lyssa needs in order to forge a sword that can kill the Beast.
Alderic is ill-equipped for a hunt and almost guaranteed to get himself killed. But as the two of them search for the rest of the materials that will be the Beast’s undoing, Alderic reveals hidden depths: dark secrets that he guards as carefully as Lyssa guards hers. Before long, and against Lyssa’s better judgment, an unlikely friendship begins to bloom—one that will either lead to the culmination of Lyssa’s quest for vengeance, or spell doom for them both.
I picked up a copy of this book earlier this year, but haven’t had a chance to start it yet. Have you read it? And if not, does it sound like something you’d enjoy?
Spell the Month in Books is a monthly meme hosted by Jana at Reviews from the Stacks. To participate, find a book title that starts with each letter in the month’s name, make a list, share your link, and that’s it! You can share anytime by the end of the month. Some months have additional themes, but feel free to participate however you’d like!
There isn’t a theme set for August (or at least not as far as I’ve seen), so I’m making up my own! August is my son’s birth month… and while he’s a full-grown young adult now, I have so many happy memories of reading books together throughout his childhood. So, in honor of my birthday boy, my August theme is… books I read with my kiddo!
Note: It was hard to come up with two U titles that we’ve actually read! So, I fudged a bit with the 2nd U… but I feel like my pick still works!
Here are my AUGUST books:
A:
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst
U:
The Unseen Guest (The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, #1) by Maryrose Wood
G:
Go, Dog. Go! by P. D. Eastman
U:
Great Day for UP by Dr. Seuss
UP! UP! UP! Great day for UP!
Wake every person, pig and pup, till EVERYONE on earth is up!
S:
The Secret of Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson
T:
Thirteenth Child (Frontier Magic, #1) by Patricia C. Wrede
Happy August! Enjoy the sunshine… and plenty of good books!
If you spelled the month in books, please leave me a link to your post — I’d love to see it!
Bookshelf Fantasies 