Watch

Our Flag Means Death, season 2 (Max)
Our favorite pirates are back this month! (Ash)

Interview with the Vampire (AMC+/Amazon Prime/Max)
This series just got released onto new platforms and it is INCREDIBLE. The acting is amazing and I am hooked, and the second season comes out soon! (Renee)
This series is based on The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice (Interview with the Vampire, book 1) .

Metal Lords (Netflix)
A fun & endearing coming of age story with Heavy Metal! (Todd)

Read

The City of Incurable Women by Maud Casey
This caught my eye in a colleague’s display! Casey takes photographs and clinical notes from Paris’s Salpetriere hospital – mostly about women who were diagnosed with various types of “hysteria” – and brings the women to life with invented backstories, feelings, and dreams. It read a bit too “literary fiction” for me at times, but was otherwise fascinating. (Dana)

Damned If You Do by Alex Brown
It’s like Buffy but better! It features Filipino monsters, a haunted town, theatre kids, and queer characters. Amazing! (Hazel)

The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer
All I have to say is: what a plot twist! (Casey)

Everything The Darkness Eats by Eric LaRocca
Set in a peaceful New England town, bizarre disappearances start to take place and secrets start to come out. What lies beneath the idyllic image of the town ends up being truly terrifying. This is one spooky read that I have been anxiously awaiting to read this fall! (Elle)

A Haunting on the Hill by Elizabeth Hand
We return to the world of Shirley Jackson’s Haunting of Hill House with this story, and I’m excited to read it this month. (Ash)

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
An amazing and eye opening story of a woman given a second chance after attempting to take her own life. She enters the midnight library, a sort of purgatory where each book holds a different possibility of a life that may be. Which will she choose? It’s hopeful, tragic and sweet. It will leave you turning the pages and wondering how we too can change the trajectory of our own lives. (Kerry)

My Body by Emily Ratajkowski
I never expected to relate to Emily Ratajkowski, but this book was an in-depth exploration into the struggles women face, how ‘seen’ we feel by the world, and what value we have – all based on our appearance. Reading this shortly after seeing Barbie hurt my soul, but in an inspirational way. (Elle)

The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz
Super cute LGBTQ romance. Cheese-themed mistaken identity, fashion shows, and more! (Renee)

Listen

Slayers: A Buffyverse Story (Audible)
This audio drama features many of the original cast of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and takes place 10 years aft the final episode of the television show. I can’t wait to see what is in store! (Ash)

Stiff by Mary Roach, read by Shelly Frasier
Mary Roach is always good for a very down-to-earth, some might say graphic or irreverent, book. From topics like traveling to Mars to Animals in National Parks to this one about the process and effects of death on the human body, she tells it like it is. (Deb)

Talking As Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (and everything in between), by Lauren Graham, read by the author
I’m a diehard Gilmore Girls fan (currently rewatching the series for the third time), so it’s surprising that it took me this long to learn about Lauren Graham’s books. The audiobook is narrated by Graham, so it’s almost like she is in the car with me, an old friend telling me funny stories to make the commute less boring. I particularly like the parts when she talks about Gilmore Girls and filming A Year in the Life. If you like Lauren Graham or Gilmore Gilmores, this nostalgic memoir is for you. (Tessa)

The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson, read by Michael Kramer
The second book in Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn series. Our heroes must navigate the realities of what happens after the overthrow of a tyrannical emperor as they try to reestablish order and stability to the land. An exciting follow-up to the first novel, diving deeper into the nuances of the world that Sanderson has created. Full of action, political intrigue, magic, and suspense. The narration by Michael Kramer is clear, and keeps you hooked as the tale unfolds. (Alanna)

Wow In the World by Guy Raz and Mindy Thomas
A first-grade patron sold me on this great podcast that covers science, technology and news. Check it out! (Jen)

Watch

The Bear (Hulu)
I’m a little late with this review, but just finished the second season of The Bear which aired on Hulu in June. While it’s listed as a comedy, I would say it leans heavily on drama! The series follows an award winning chef, who returns to his hometown to take over a family restaurant. The acting is excellent, the emotion is palpable, and it leaves you feeling all the anxiety, stress, and excitement that comes with family relationships, and the restaurant business. I highly recommend with the caveat that if you are averse to swearing, this may not be the show for you! (Catherine)
Check out our Hulu Roku to watch.

Before We Die, season one
I watch all the (dark) British detective shows; this one is exceptional. We know going in that the plot involves a murder, and even though I knew the outcome I was still on the edge of my seat through the first episode waiting to see what would happen. (Amber)

Reptile (Netflix)
Benicio Del Toro – that is all you need to know. (Elle)

Read

All Adults Here by Emma Straub
Eh…cute story of a family and what all is happening with its members in light of the death of a lady in a small town where everyone knows each other. (Deb)

Blind Descent by Nevada Barr
Do you like National Parks? What about tight dark spaces? In book six of the Anna Pigeon mystery series, my favorite National Park Service ranger encounters a murderer 800 feet below ground in Lechuguilla Cave at Carlsbad Caverns National Park. It just so happened that I read this book the month before my first caving experience, and I greatly enjoyed learning about caving terminology, tools, and techniques that cavers use. However, Anna’s fear of caving began to rub off me! As always, author Nevada Barr writes another exciting mystery. For additional fun, might I suggest pairing this book with a documentary about caves, such as Journey into Amazing Caves or Mysterious Life of Caves. (Tessa)

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake
i love love love Ashley Herring Blake, but i also dislike romcoms, and i think my dislike of romcomcs was too powerful for me to like this very much. There were hints of how great she can write characters, but most of it feel flat. (Ash)

I Feed Her To The Beast And The Beast Is Me by Jamison Shea
Absolutely wild paranormal horror. A Black, queer ballerina makes a deal with an ancient demon blood river for power and reputation. (Renee)

Joe vs. Elan School (web comic)
A terrifying account of a Teen who was sent/kidnapped to a Elan School, a school for troubled teens in Maine. Joe’s story is one of physical & mental abuse, and how he attempts to get though the experience and live his life. (Todd)

Losing Hope by Colleen Hoover
Eh. No 17yo guy is as emotionally aware as Holder. Too many secrets for too much of the book. I think publishers went back and re-released her works from before It Ends with Us and It Starts with Us and the earlier works just aren’t as good. Ok, though. (Deb)

One of Us Is Back by Karen McManus
I enjoyed the previous two books in this trilogy, and was initially so disappointed with this, the newly released third book. Had I read the previous two more recently it might have been better, but there were so many characters and allusions to the other books that I felt a bit lost in the weeds. It improved, though! I ended up liking this one almost as much as the others. (Dana)

Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow
Funny, sad, and surprising–I was rooting for middle-schooler Simon and his whole town! (Jen)

Wrong Place, Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister
Looking for a long weekend read, I picked this up on a whim and ended up hooked! It’s a murder mystery, with some great twists and a very unique plot line. The main character wakes up each morning and it is the previous day, creating a plot that goes back in time in order to solve a crime in her current time. While initially I thought this would be confusing, the author does a great job setting it up, and it was really fun to read! (Catherine)

Listen

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver, read by Charlie Thurston
So engaging from Page 1!! Dickens’s David Copperfield meets 1990’s Appalachia. Reading Dickens isn’t required, but if you have, the parallels are plentiful. Could not wait to get back in the car & keep listening! I don’t have many 5-star reviews in 2023, so I’m grateful for this one! (Deb)

Layover by V
V’s (BTS) solo debut album is here! Contains more jazz and R&B than you’re probably expecting. (Casey)

Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn
Excitedly awaiting season three – book four of the Bridgerton series is (in my opinion) the best one! Absolutely love the story of Penelope and Colin!! Although, sadly, I don’t think the series will hold true to the book based on the season synopsis. Hopefully we’ll see come December! (Elle)

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, read by Jennifer Kim and Julian Cihi
Not knowing anything about gaming, I wasn’t sure if this would resonate with me, but it was a really nice story. The characters were flawed but likeable and I came to care about what would happen next. (Deb)