What I Read in October 2023

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Hello! It's that time of the month again, which means it's time for my monthly reading wrap-up. I read a whopping 21 books in October, which is around what I strive for normally (15-20). I noticed I went through mini breaks throughout the month where I didn't read for a few days, which means I wasn't finishing books consecutively.

If you're new here, hi! I'm Jayla, I write blog posts at the end of every month summarizing everything I read during the month. The structure of this post is going to be like my post in September, where I wrote my review first with the description of the book underneath. I've found that's more convenient for people so they're able to see whether they want to read them or not based on my review. With that said, let's get started!

- Desperate Measures by Katee Robert: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 6th. This is the first book in the Wicked Villains series, and it's about Jasmine and Jafar. I've only read this book in the series so far, and I thought it was good. It's pretty short, I wanna say it's around 200 pages, which made it easy to fly through. I think my biggest complaint was how fast the spice started. I think because it's so short, the spice kinda hit me outta nowhere. I'd recommend this to anyone who likes Disney villains or the movie Aladdin.

"My Savior… Or My Ruin? One night, and my entire life went up in flames. All because of him. Jafar. As my world burned down around me, he offered me a choice. Walk away with nothing but my freedom… Or rise to his challenge and win my fortune back. I bargained. I lost. Now Jafar owns me, and even as my mind rails against his rules, my body loves the punishments he deals out when I break them. But a gilded cage is still a prison, I’ll do anything to obtain my freedom. Even betray the man I’m falling for."

- Black Ties and White Lies by Kat Singleton: I rated this book 3/5 stars and finished it on October 7th. I was excited to read this because I'd seen it around Booktok for a while and heard good things, so I thought I'd give it a try. I didn't have a lot of misses this month, but this was definitely one of them. There was something off about it the entire time I was reading it, and it ruined the entire thing for me. Well, two things. The first thing was the MMC Beckham. First of all, what kinda name is that? It just sounds like a pretentious douchebag name, which fits perfectly. His internal monologue was all over the place and just disgusting. He'd go from being arrogant about himself to degrading Margo and then somehow back to praising her? It didn't make any sense to me and it was so hard to get through. The second thing was the amount of dialogue during the spicy scenes. It was totally unnecessary in my opinion, because at that point it just ruins the moment. Overall I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. Like, anyone. Please don't read this.

"Life is never black and white. One minute you’re a struggling graphic designer in LA that's finally coming to terms with being single forever, and the next you're flying to New York in a private jet to get engaged to your ex-boyfriend’s older brother. At least...that’s what everyone thinks. Forced to clean up his playboy image in order to protect his company, Beckham Sinclair, the city’s most eligible billionaire bachelor, wants me to be his fake fiancée and personal assistant. Now I'm spending every spare second with a man I thought I’d never see again. My freshly mended heart has barely recovered from the first time a Sinclair broke it. But with each passing day, Beck’s dirty mouth and lingering stares make me question his motives—and mine. As the line blurs between real and pretend, only one thing is certain: there are secrets hiding in this city full of black ties and white lies."

- King of Wrath by Ana Huang: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 7th. This is the first book in the Kings of Sin series. I finished her Twisted series in August and absolutely loved it, so I was very excited to start this one. I've heard so many good things about this series and for good reason. I liked Dante and Vivian as individual characters but I feel like they didn't have a lot of chemistry together. It was hard to believe in their love story, which is kind of a bummer, but overall I enjoyed it. I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoyed the Dreamland Billionaires series by Lauren Asher, or anyone who likes a very grumpy broody male main character.

"She’s the wife he never wanted…and the weakness he never saw coming. Ruthless. Meticulous. Arrogant. Dante Russo thrives on control, both personally and professionally. The billionaire CEO never planned to marry—until the threat of blackmail forces him into an engagement with a woman he barely knows. Vivian Lau, jewelry heiress and daughter of his newest enemy. It doesn’t matter how beautiful or charming she is. He'll do everything in his power to destroy the evidence and their betrothal. There’s only one problem: now that he has her...he can't bring himself to let her go.

Elegant. Ambitious. Well-mannered. Vivian Lau is the perfect daughter and her family’s ticket into the highest echelons of high society. Marrying a blue-blooded Russo means opening doors that would otherwise remain closed to her new-money family. While the rude, elusive Dante isn't her idea of a dream partner, she agrees to their arranged marriage out of duty. Craving his touch was never part of the plan. Neither was the worst thing she could possibly do: fall in love with her future husband."

- Wicked Beauty by Katee Robert: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 9th. This is the third book in the Dark Olympus series and follows Helen, Achilles, and Patroclus. I thought it was good! I read Electric Idol (the second book in this series) in August and really enjoyed it so I was excited to read the rest of the series. I don't have much to say about it really; I thought it was well-written and the characters were really cool. I'd recommend this to anyone who likes Greek mythology.

"In Olympus, you either have the power to rule...or you are ruled. Achilles Kallis may have been born with nothing, but as a child he vowed he would claw his way into the poisonous city's inner circle. Now that a coveted role has opened to anyone with the strength to claim it, he and his partner, Patroclus Fotos, plan to compete and double their odds of winning. Neither expect infamous beauty Helen Kasios to be part of the prize...or for the complicated fire that burns the moment she looks their way. Zeus may have decided Helen is his to give away, but she has her own plans. She enters into the competition as a middle finger to the meddling Thirteen rulers, effectively vying for her own hand in marriage. Unfortunately, there are those who would rather see her dead than lead the city. The only people she can trust are the ones she can't keep her hands off—Achilles and Patroclus. But can she really believe they have her best interests at heart when every stolen kiss is a battlefield?"

- Hunting Adeline by H.D. Carlton: I rated this book 6/5 stars and finished it on October 11th. This is the second book in the cat and mouse duo. Out of the two in this series, I definitely prefer Haunting more content-wise, but I liked this one a lot too. It's much darker than the first one for sure, so if you want to read this, I'd check for trigger warnings. I can see how this could be too much for some people for sure. I recommend this to anyone who's read Haunting Adeline, the first book in the duo.

"The Diamond: Death walks alongside me, But the reaper is no match for me. I'm trapped in a world full of monsters dressed as men, and those who aren't as they seem. They won't keep me forever. I no longer recognize the person I've become, And I'm fighting to find my way back to the beast who hunts me in the night. They call me a diamond, But they've only created an angel of death.

The Hunter: I was born a predator, With ruthlessness ingrained in my bones. When what's mine is stolen from me in the night, Like a diamond hidden within a fortress, I find that I can no longer contain the beast. Blood will paint the ground as I tear apart this world to find her. And bring her back to where she belongs. No one will escape my wrath, Especially not those who have betrayed me."

- Radiant Sin by Katee Robert: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 12th. This is the fourth book in the Dark Olympus series and follows Apollo and Cassandra. I liked this one too! I liked Cassandra a lot because out of the books I've read in this series, she's the only one who's a mortal/not a Greek god/goddess. Apollo's character was cool too, I liked how he was portrayed. I also liked the unexpected twists in this book, I think it made it more interesting. I'd recommend this to anyone who likes Greek mythology.

"As a disgraced member of a fallen house, Cassandra Gataki has seen firsthand what comes from trusting the venomous Thirteen. But when the maddeningly gorgeous and kind Apollo asks her to go undercover as his plus-one at a week-long party hosted by a dangerous new power player…Cassandra reluctantly agrees to have his back. On one condition: when it's all over, and Apollo has the ammunition he needs to protect Olympus, she and her sister will be allowed to leave. For good. Apollo may be the city's official spymaster, but it's his ability to inspire others that keeps him at the top. Despite what the rest of Olympus says, there's no one he trusts more than Cassandra. Yet even as their fake relationship takes a wicked turn for the scaldingly hot, a very real danger surfaces… threatening not only Cassandra and Apollo, but the very heart of Olympus itself."

- Cruel Seduction by Katee Robert: I rated this book 5/5 stars and finished it on October 12th. This is the fifth book in the Dark Olympus series and follows Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Adonis, and Pandora. This is definitely my favorite one out of the books I've read in this series. I loved Hephaestus and Adonis, and I loved Aphrodite and Pandora. The spice was very spicy but it felt romantic as well. I'm very excited to read Midnight Ruin in January. Once again, I recommend this to anyone who loves Greek mythology.

"Aphrodite has never flinched at getting her perfectly manicured hands dirty, and she's not about to start now—even if that means marrying Olympus's enemy number one, the new Hephaestus. She has a wicked plan to keep her deadly new husband off-balance, seducing the one person he seems to care about most in this world: Pandora, a woman as beautiful as she is sweet. Two can play the seduction game, however, and Hephaestus is all too happy to put his new wife in her place. Her ex, Adonis, seems like he'll do the trick. It doesn't hurt that he's gorgeous in the way of fallen angels, either. The only problem with using seduction as a weapon? Hearts are all too quick to get involved. With Hephaestus and Aphrodite trading venomous strikes that feel a whole lot like foreplay, lines become blurred and emotions entangled. But a broken heart may be the least of their worries. With unrest in Olympus reaching new heights, these bedroom games may have deadly consequences for themselves, their city, and everyone they've come to love."

- The Anxiety Healer's Guide, Coping Strategies and Mindfulness Techniques to Calm the Mind and Body by Alison Seponara: I rated this book 6/5 stars and finished it on October 14th. I picked this up randomly on a whim. I was browsing the nonfiction section at my library around the self-help section and this stuck out, so I wanted to give it a shot. I loved it! It was very helpful and I found that I learned a lot. I took plenty of pictures too which was cool. I recommend this to anyone with anxiety or anyone who likes self-help books.

"How can you begin holistically tackling your anxiety whenever the moment strikes? In The Anxiety Healer’s Guide licensed counselor and creator of the Instagram account @TheAnxietyHealer Alison Seponara brings her expertise and commitment to healing anxiety to the world. While the journey toward recovery might look different for everyone, this portable resource is full of concrete activities, tools, and techniques that have been scientifically proven to calm the sympathetic (fight-or-flight) nervous system and give sufferers a better sense of control over their minds and bodies. This comprehensive, easy-to-use guide includes everything you need to help holistically treat your anxiety and create your own anxiety-healing tool kit. This is an essential read for anyone who’s tired of living with anxiety and looking for helpful solutions they can apply anytime, anywhere."

- Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 14th. I don't remember anything from this book, and I think four stars is kind of generous. I thought it was very overrated and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

"Darley, the eldest daughter in the well-connected, old-money Stockton family, followed her heart, trading her job and her inheritance for motherhood but giving up far too much in the process; Sasha, a middle-class New England girl, has married into the Brooklyn Heights family, and finds herself cast as the arriviste outsider; and Georgiana, the baby of the family, has fallen in love with someone she can’t have and must decide what kind of person she wants to be."

- Pucking Around by Emily Rath: I rated this book 5/5 stars and finished it on October 20th. This is the first book in the Jacksonville Rays series. This took the cake for the longest book I've read so far at over 730 pages. I've read quite a few hockey romances this year, but this has been my favorite by far. There was so much spice, like, so much. It took at least 3 days to get through because of how long it was. I loved it, and I easily recommend this to anyone who loves hockey.

"My name is Rachel Price, and two months ago, I walked away from the perfect man. Sweet and funny, and so hot it should be illegal—we shared one magical night. No names. No strings. I never thought I’d see him again. I was wrong. It turns out Mr. Perfect is the playboy grinder for the Jacksonville Rays, the NHL’s hottest new hockey team…and I’m his new physical therapist. Oh, and the jerk doesn’t even recognize me! This fellowship is going to be the longest ten months of my life. Mr. Perfect Mistake will do anything to get back on my good side. Meanwhile, his best friend is the surly new equipment manager always riding my case. Worst of all, I’ve got an uncooperative goalie who thinks I can’t tell he’s hiding an injury! This is my chance to prove myself, and I’m not risking it for anything. But with one unexpected night, one secret revealed, these men are ready to test all my limits. I can’t fall for a player…let alone three. But if love is a game, these guys are playing to win."

- The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 22nd. I liked this! I felt like the first half was 5 stars and the second half was 3 stars, so it got 4 stars overall. The only thing that bothered me was how slow the second half was. I was trying really hard not to DNF it because I knew I'd probably enjoy it if I finished it. I did enjoy it, I just wish the second half had been more fast-paced like the first half. There was a couple twists that kept me on my toes though which I did enjoy. I recommend this to anyone who likes a little sprinkle of Halloween in your romance.

"Florence Day is the ghostwriter for one of the most prolific romance authors in the industry, and she has a problem—after a terrible breakup, she no longer believes in love. It’s as good as dead. When her new editor, a too-handsome mountain of a man, won’t give her an extension on her book deadline, Florence prepares to kiss her career goodbye. But then she gets a phone call she never wanted to receive, and she must return home for the first time in a decade to help her family bury her beloved father. For ten years, she’s run from the town that never understood her, and even though she misses the sound of a warm Southern night and her eccentric, loving family and their funeral parlor, she can’t bring herself to stay. Even with her father gone, it feels like nothing in this town has changed. And she hates it. Until she finds a ghost standing at the funeral parlor’s front door, just as broad and infuriatingly handsome as ever, and he’s just as confused about why he’s there as she is. Romance is most certainly dead... but so is her new editor, and his unfinished business will have her second-guessing everything she’s ever known about love stories."

- Drowning by T.J. Newman: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 22nd. I thought this was cool! It's pretty short (around 300 pages) so it was easy to get through and it was very fast-paced. The author was a flight attendant before she became an author so it felt more authentic. I'd recommend this to anyone who's not afraid of flying, or anyone who likes fast-paced thrillers.

"Six minutes after takeoff, Flight 1421 crashes into the Pacific Ocean. During the evacuation, an engine explodes and the plane is flooded. Those still alive are forced to close the doors—but it’s too late. The plane sinks to the bottom with twelve passengers trapped inside. More than two hundred feet below the surface, engineer Will Kent and his eleven-year-old daughter Shannon are waist-deep in water and fighting for their lives. Their only chance at survival is an elite rescue team on the surface led by professional diver Chris Kent—Shannon’s mother and Will’s soon-to-be ex-wife—who must work together with Will to find a way to save their daughter and rescue the passengers from the sealed airplane, which is now teetering on the edge of an undersea cliff. There’s not much time. There’s even less air. With devastating emotional power and heart-stopping suspense, Drowning is an unforgettable thriller about a family’s desperate fight to save themselves and the people trapped with them—against impossible odds."

- The Edge of Sleep by Jake Emanuel: I rated this book 3/5 stars and DNF'd it at 30% on October 24th. I normally wouldn't have included this in here because I didn't finish it but I felt the need to talk about it. I thought this book would be similar to Insomnia that I read last month, but unfortunately, it wasn't. It felt like a weird fever dream but not in a good way. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone.

"What if the whole world fell asleep...and didn’t wake up again? Dave Torres, a night watchman in a placid coastal town, knows all about sleep troubles. Since childhood, he’s battled terrors and nightmares. Sometimes those battles leak into his waking life, with disastrous consequences for those he loves. Now Dave lives alone and self-medicates to neutralize his dreams. It’s not much of a life, he knows. The morning after Independence Day, Santa Mira, California, is so quiet Dave can hear the ocean from miles away. Traffic signals blink from red to green over empty intersections. Storefronts remain locked up tight. Every radio station whispers static. And all over town, there are bodies, lying right where their owners left them. Dead right where they slept. Dave―along with his ex-girlfriend, Katie, his best friend, Matteo, and Linda, a nurse he’s just met―struggle to unravel the mystery before sleep overtakes them all. Except the answer to the mystery might lie in the one place that frightens Dave His twisted, unnerving dreams. Now Dave and his friends must straddle the liminal boundary between life and death as they fight to save everyone they’ve ever loved―and to keep their eyes open. Because if any of them falls asleep now, it will be the last thing they ever do."

- Deviant King by Rina Kent: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 25th. This is the first book in the Royal Elite series. Aiden and Elsa! AIDEN AND ELSA! I was pleasantly surprised by this one and I wasn't sure if I was going to like it. It was good though, I liked it a lot. I'm not sure who I would recommend this to though, so I guess I'd recommend it to anyone.

"I have a simple plan. Finish Royal Elite School and get into my dream university. One glance from the school’s king blows my plan up in smoke. One glance and he suffocates my air. One glance and he issues his death sentence. His first words spiral my life into irreparable chaos. “I will destroy you.” Everything about Aiden King is black. Black mind. Black heart. Black soul. I should’ve remained quiet and endured the time I have left. I didn’t. I made the irrevocable mistake of provoking the king on his throne. The devil in his hell. And now, I’ll pay the price. Being hated by Aiden King is dangerous. But being wanted by him is lethal."

- Steel Princess by Rina Kent: I rated this book 5/5 stars and finished it on October 25th. This is the second book in the Royal Elite series. It follows Aiden and Elsa once again, and I think I liked it more than the first one. Aiden is like the dark villain you're not supposed to root for, and Elsa is the Disney princess you enjoy reading about. Again, I recommend this to anyone, but specifically people who have read the first book.

"Elsa: He said he’ll destroy me, and he did. I might have lost the battle, but the war is far from over. They say it starts with one move to dethrone the king. No one mentioned he’ll yank me with him on the way down.

Aiden: If Steel’s little princess wants a war, then war it is. There’s only one rule: my rules or none at all. By all means, show me what you got, sweetheart."

- Twisted Kingdom by Rina Kent: I rated this book 5/5 stars and finished it on October 26th. This is the third book in the Royal Elite series. I think this was a great finale to Aiden and Elsa's story, and it all felt resolved. I recommend this to anyone who's read the first two, only because you need to read the first two to read this one.

"The truth screws you over before it sets you free. Masks drop. Secrets unravel. Elsa’s race after the past blinds her from the present. I’ll fight for her. I’ll bring her back. I’ll protect her even if it’s the last thing I do. We made a promise. She’s mine. Are you ready for one final game, sweetheart?"

- Iced Out by C.E. Ricci: I rated this book 5/5 stars and finished it on October 26th. This is the first book in the Leighton U series. Look at that, another hockey romance! Two in one month! How crazy is that? It's not, I hope you're all sensing the sarcasm here. I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy this one because I'd never read an MM romance before, especially not an MM hockey romance. It was rivals-to-lovers which was cool, and I think both characters were very well-written. I wouldn't change anything about it. I recommend this book to anyone who loves hockey romance, or just hockey in general.

"All's fair in hate and hockey. My path to success never included an enemy as a teammate, especially one as infuriating as Quinton de Haas. Clawing under my skin is his favorite pastime, only feeding the animosity between us as the years pass. We’re as completely opposite as two people can be; the golden boy and the black sheep. Constantly at odds or at each other’s throats. The only thing we can agree on is hockey is our true love, and we’ll do whatever it takes to come out on top. I never imagined that drive would lead me to do the unthinkable: falling into bed with my not-so-straight rival. But athletes are a superstitious bunch, and when our hook-ups lead to victories, we tell ourselves we can’t stop. Besides, it’s all for the sake of the team, right?"

- Flawless by Elsie Silver: I rated this book 4/5 stars and finished it on October 27th. This is the first book in the Chesnut Springs series. I finally started this series! Yay! I'm glad I did because I loved reading Rhett and Summer's story. It was giving grumpy/sunshine and I loved it. I'd recommend this to anyone really, I thought it was fantastic.

"The rules were simple. Keep my hands off his daughter and stay out of trouble. But now I’m stuck with her. There’s only one bed. And well, rules are made to be broken. I’m the face of professional bull riding—the golden boy. Or at least I was, until it all blew up in my face. Now my agent says I have to clean up my image, so I’m stuck with his ball-busting daughter for the rest of the season as my “full-time supervision.” But I don’t need a goddamn babysitter, especially one with skin-tight jeans, a sexy smirk, and a mouth she can’t stop running. A mouth I can’t stop thinking about. Because Summer isn’t just another conquest. She sees the man behind the mask, and she doesn’t run—she pulls me closer, even when she shouldn’t. She says this means nothing. I say this means everything. She says there are boundaries we shouldn’t cross. That my reputation can’t take any more hits—and neither can her damaged heart. I say I’m going to steal it anyway."

- Black Knight by Rina Kent: I rated this book 6/5 stars and finished it on October 28th. This is the fourth book in the Royal Elite series and follows Kimberly and Xander. This one stood out the most out of the ones I've read in the series so far purely because of the content and what it covered. The biggest trigger warnings going in hit close to home, and reading about it in such a way made me feel seen. I thought Kimberly and Xander had great chemistry together and I loved reading their story. I recommend this to anyone who's read this series or anyone who's struggled with eating disorders/self-harm.

"Kimberly: He was once my best friend, now he’s my worst enemy. Xander Knight is heartbreakingly beautiful. Ridiculously popular. Brutally cruel. He’s a knight but won’t do any saving.

Xander: We started as a dream, now we’re a nightmare. Kimberly Reed is pathetically fake. Terribly innocent. Secretly black. She can hide but never from me."

- Vicious Prince by Rina Kent: I rated this book 5/5 stars and finished it on October 29th. This is the fifth book in the Royal Elite series. Going into Ronan and Teal's story, I was expecting an arranged marriage and a reverse grumpy/sunshine (with Teal being grumpy and Ronan being sunshine). I got both of those things and more that I wasn't expecting. I was pleasantly surprised by this book and I enjoyed it a lot. I recommend this to anyone who's read the rest of the series, only because if you haven't, you won't understand any of the other characters mentioned.

"He’s prince charming. Just not hers.

I have a secret. I stole a heart, or rather a marriage contract. It wasn’t mine to own, to look at or to even consider. But it was there for the taking so I took it. Huge mistake. Ronan Astor is a nobility in this world. Arrogant player. Heartless bastard. Vicious prince. Now, he’s out to destroy me. What he doesn’t know is that I’m out to destroy him too. My name is Teal Van Doren, and I’m where princes go to die."

- Ruthless Empire by Rina Kent: I rated this book 5/5 stars and finished it on October 29th. This is the sixth and final book in the Royal Elite series. Cole and Silver! Honestly, this was the story I found myself being the most excited about as I was getting to the end of this series. I knew Cole and Silver had grown up together, but I didn't realize that's where their romance started. I'm not going to spoil anything, but there was one unexpected twist I didn't see coming from a mile away. I wish I could recommend this book to more people other than the ones who have read the rest of the series, but I'm gonna recommend this entire series to everyone. I know six books may seem daunting, and it's definitely the longest-finished series (the Edens series by Devney Perry isn't finished yet but that has six books as well) I've read this year. I enjoyed it a lot and I'd recommend this to everyone. The books are short too, about 300 pages each, and they're fairly fast-paced so they're easy to fly through.

"She’s off limits. He has none.

There’s a girl. Beautiful. Popular. Fake. And my obsession. My fall. Probably my damnation. Did that stop me? Do I care? No and no. There’s a line between right and wrong. Moral and immoral. And then there’s her. I cross every limit with blood-coated fingers. She says she hates me. I say I hate her too as I trap her, own her. Make her all mine."

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That's everything I read in October! I'm glad I was able to get this post out early enough since I know I kinda slacked off in August and September. I hope everyone has a Happy Halloween and I'll be back after Thanksgiving!