The Fall into Books Tag

Hi everyone! I had a little bit of time today (shocking, honestly), and I wanted to write a post, but I don’t quite have the brain capacity to sort a review out at the moment. Life is super hectic, I’ve been working a bit more than usual as well as being at university, but hopefully I’ll have a bit of respite soon with reading week and no extra work days!

Show us an autumnal book that you love & feel deserves more attention!

I am obsessed with Adrienne Young’s books, and Spells for Forgetting is my absolute favourite of hers. Small-town, mystery, a little magic and buckets of atmosphere make it perfect for this time of year.

I think I may need to do a reread…

What is your most anticipated book release for fall of 2025?

So I’m not really one to keep up with book releases, but these three have all managed to cross my radar!
I’ll be honest, the first two covers I keep getting mixed up, but they’re both about witches! The first is witches vs the patriarchy, and the second is a witchy murder mystery. The third is a little out of my usual sci-fi, but I’ve been enjoying slightly more contemporary books this year so I’m interested.

Show us a newly-ish released book with an autumnal/cozy book cover!

I mean… what else was I going to pick for this one??? I adored Sangu Mandanna’s first book, and my friend bought me A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping for my birthday this year. I don’t think it’s actually autumnal in the plot, but I get that vibe from the cosiness. (The US cover even more so!)

What is your favourite suspenseful or spooky book?

I don’t read a lot of thrillers or horror, but I do enjoy a creepy sci-fi from time to time! Out of all the ones I have read, I think Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer is on top. The slowly building feeling of utter dread through the pages is incredible, I was SO tense while reading!

What fictional character(s) would you love to go to a fall festival with?

Ooh interesting… I am really bad at remembering characters! The first answer that sprang to mind is Tandy from Stay for a Spell by Amy Coombe (out next year, I was lucky to read an ARC!). Tandy is such a lovely character and I can picture a day of browsing market stalls, book shopping and tea drinking!

Show us one of your comfort reads!

I mean… Green Rider by Kristen Britain is genuinely my ultimate comfort read. It’s not that it’s a cosy story, it’s just one that has so much nostalgia for me and I just love rereading it over and over.

What are 2-4 books that are on your fall tbr?

So I don’t really make seasonal TBRs, and to be honest, I don’t tend to read seasonally in terms of book themes. I just read whatever all year round. That being said, there are some books that I hope to get to if I have time:

  • The Enduring Universe by Kritika H. Rao. I have been dying to finish this series and Tor sent me a copy of this one. It’s been staring at me for a bit now…
  • Wild Woman by Philippa Forester. The lovely folks at Bloomsbury sent me this one and it’s all about women who work with nature in some way, so it’s right up my street!
  • The Executioner’s Three by Susan Dennard. Very seasonally appropriate, I think – I need one autumnal book on here!

What are you most looking forward to this fall? (concerts, leaves changing, etc)

  • Hiking! I’m an all-year-round hiker, really, but hiking in the autumn feels that little bit more magical. I can’t wait to explore my new county and see it in its beautiful fiery coat. I live in the south west of England and the changing leaves are so spectacular here!
  • A staycation. My best friend is coming to stay with her dogs, and we’ve rented a cabin for extra cosy vibes. It’ll be a whole week of chats by the fires, walking and anything we fancy.
  • Baking (hopefully). I’m coeliac, which means I can’t have any gluten, and baking gluten free goodies adds an extra challenge. Gluten free bakes are notoriously crumbly, dense or sticky, occasionally all three at once! I know people who can make delicious gluten free cakes, so I am determined to have a go this year.
  • Samhain. My best friend and I have a yearly Samhain tradition and I am excited for it every time. I bring the soul cakes (gluten free ofc, the only thing I can bake!) and she provides the autumn fruit punch and bonfire. Honestly one of my favourite nights every year.

Talk about an autumnal book that you thought you’d love but didn’t.

The House Witch. Goodness me I hated the main character in that book. I think I made it to 20% before I DNFed. It had all the ingredients for me to love: a cat, a witch, a cosy kitchen in a castle… But it just did not work at all.

What are your favourite movies to watch in the fall?

I’m not really a movie person. Like, at all. I last went to the cinema in… maybe 2018? That being said, I do manage to watch The Nightmare Before Christmas every autumn. I don’t know if it’s an autumn or winter film, maybe both? Anyway, that’s about the only one I tend to watch. If I’m watching anything else for autumn vibes, it’s going to be The Vampire Diaries!

And that’s it!

Just something short and fun today. I’ll stop saying that I hope to be back with more posts again, because I think I am just jinxing myself haha, but I will say that I do have all the November LTB posts ready to go, yay!

5 responses to “The Fall into Books Tag”

  1. Yay, I’m glad you felt inspired to join in this fun tag!

    I have celiac too! I actually was diagnosed at birth and my mom was diagnosed in the 1980s, so I’ve always lived a gluten free life. My mom actually knows how to make really delicious, perfectly moist gluten free baked goods—if you like, I can ask her for her gluten free baking secrets and share them with you too! I also know several gluten free baking blogs/websites which have some killer recipe sections available too, which I’m also happy to share!

    Your Samhain tradition sounds so sweet and cozy! Do I know what a gluten free soul cake is? No. Do I now want to try one because they just sound so lovely and cozy?…Absolutely!! I hope you have a wonderful time and enjoy this season 😀

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Ooh hello fellow Coeliac! I would love some gf baking tips! I only know of Becky Excell, but I haven’t actually tried any of her stuff yet.

      Soul cakes are so yummy. This is the recipe I use, I just sub for a standard gf self-raising flour and it works fine. I make two batches because I always want more haha.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Ooooh the recipe you shared has the history of soul cakes, and it’s pretty interesting! It’s funny, I went to Catholic school for 8 years, and I never learned about the Catholic history and traditions (including soul cakes) behind “All Hallows Eve,” “All Saints Day,” and “All Souls Day”—we celebrated those days by going to mass in the middle of the school day, but we never had any fun treats or traditions (booo! lol).

        I will definitely ask my mom for her gluten free baking tips and come back to share them! I already know 2 of her tips:
        1) use more milk than eggs, because it makes the pastry turn out less eggy in taste and also less heavy
        2) try to use rice flour, as it’s the sweetest type of flour and adds sweetness to the pastry so that you don’t have to add as much extra sugar (unless you want to, of course)
        Here’s my Notion database with gluten free recipes and websites/blogs: https://www.notion.so/meals-to-try-c229340e98d7493b85f946b44cc8ff21?source=copy_link

        Liked by 1 person

      2. The history is really cool! I love that there is so much history to our traditions in the UK, you just have to scrape the modern religious adaptations off the top haha. I went to a Church of England school for a couple of years, and we also never learned about any of the traditional histories! Probably because they’re all Pagan.
        I never even considered rice flour, thank you! And thank you for sharing your database, I’ll have a browse!

        Liked by 1 person

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Welcome to my little corner of the internet!
I’m Emma (she/her), a 30-something living in the UK. I love to read fantasy, science fiction and non-fiction books, though I do dip into many other genres. Enjoy your reading!

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