October was a slow reading month for me, due to a book that just DRAGGED and took me almost the whole month to read. On a positive note though, I did have a five star read, so there's that!
Here's what my reading life looked like in October.
📊 Reading Stats
Books Read: 2
Genres: Fiction (2): Thriller (1) ◦ Horror (1)
Formats: eBook (1) ◦ Print (1)
Sources: Kindle Unlimited (1) ◦ Library (1)
Average Rating: 3.5 stars
Yearly Goal Progress: 48 / 100 books
📖 Book Reviews
📘 The Mirror House Girls
Author: Faith Gardner
Genre: Fiction ◦ Thriller
Publication: 2025
Format & Source: eBook ◦ Kindle Unlimited
Dates Read: September 23 – October 6, 2025
Rating: ★★★★★
When Winona rents a room at the eccentric Mirror House, she’s hoping for connection, but what she finds is a “family” led by a charismatic psychologist whose vision for self-improvement soon takes a disturbing turn. As loyalties shift and control tightens, the dream of belonging transforms into something much darker.
I’ve always been fascinated by cults, so this one had my attention from the start — and wow, what a ride. The story takes its time to set the scene, but once the tension starts to build, it doesn’t let go. Gardner does an incredible job capturing how easily people can be swept up in a charismatic figure’s ideology. The characters are sharply drawn, their motivations believable, and their descent unsettlingly realistic. I found myself flipping pages late into the night, cringing at the chaos but unable to look away.
If you enjoy psychological fiction that blurs the line between devotion and manipulation, this one absolutely delivers. The ending left me thinking long after I closed the book, and immediately searching for more by this author.
⚡Quick Take: A chilling, slow-burn dive into the psychology of cults. Equal parts gripping and unnerving.
📘 Gallows Hill
Author: Darcy Coates
Genre: Fiction ◦ Horror
Publication: 2022
Format & Source: Print ◦ Library
Dates Read: October 6 – 28, 2025
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
When Margot Hull inherits her family’s winery after the death of her estranged parents, she reluctantly returns to Gallows Hill, a sprawling estate built on cursed ground where hundreds were once hanged. The townspeople whisper about the land’s dark past, and when strange occurrences begin inside the dilapidated home, Margot starts to suspect the curse might be more than just a rumor.
Darcy Coates is usually a three-star author for me — her books make for fun, spooky diversions when I’m in the mood for ghosts or light horror. But Gallows Hill ended up being my least favorite of hers so far. At nearly 400 pages, it stretched longer than the story could sustain. The first half was painfully slow, with very little happening until the final third. Once the pace finally picked up, I was mildly invested again, but it never reached that level of eerie excitement I was hoping for.
That said, the side characters were surprisingly engaging, adding some much-needed life to the slow build. And the setting, with its creaking house, cursed soil, and creeping dread, was everything you’d want from a haunted estate story. I just wish the execution had matched the potential.
⚡Quick Take: Moody and atmospheric with a solid cast, but dragged down by pacing that keeps the chills from ever fully landing.
🎖️ Favorite Book of the Month
The Mirror House Girls by Faith Gardner
That’s a wrap on this month’s reads — here’s to another great chapter! 📚
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