Girl. Assistant blew me away, unexpected as it was, as this is not a genre I gravitate towards. Either way, I was expecting to love Apprentice, and I did. HNM is clever and funny and writes with a loveable flow that makes it hard to put the book down. I loved the continued development of the characters throughout Apprentice, especially Rebecca. We picked up right where we left off in the first book, there's adventure and banter and so many *gasp* moments. I let myself be entertained and I was thoroughly amused. Even more amusing are HNM's videos on socials, omg. She funny. Anyway, the cover is gorgeous and I want book 3 right now.

Note: I would have loved to reread Assistant before this but there was no time! I agree with another reviewer that a recap at the beginning of a sequel and each book of a series would be amazing, written by the author so that they give you the info they want you to remember and nothing more. Can you imagine HNM doing this? It would be hysterical.

There were moments reading this book when I was holding my breath, moments when my heart clenched and my stomach felt tight, and moments when my skin crawled along with the MCs. You feel every emotion the characters feel because this was written with so much passion. This felt so real. It felt like the words were spitting at you at times and pleading with you at other times. Never could I have guessed what was coming next.

This was a Kindle purchase for me which isn't common, but I like to have e-books to read in the pool and when I'm out of the house without a book. I wish I'd bought the hard copy so I could lend this to everyone I know. If you do happen to read it, please read the Author's Note at the end. The fact that the author began writing this at 17 is a testament to the adultification of BIPOC girls with the maturity of Mottley's words, and a reminder to always listen to what young people have to say.

I love a gothic read

I breezed through that one, didn't I...

The September House was somewhere on my list to read for a little while but I really only picked it up when I did because it's September and that seemed à propos. Well, I was delighted from the start. Seriously, the dedication itself is hilarious. This was not your average haunted house story and for that, I'm so happy to give it five stars. There was humour, and horror, and some psychological components that make your mind race. *chef's kiss* I almost want to call this a cozy read it was that enjoyable!