#small rain

➷ monthly book round-up: september 2025

books read: 6 [-33%] average rating: 3.83 [+7%] average speed: 14 days [+17%] total pages: 2,240 [-15%] yearly goal progress: 69/100 [69%] best of the month: small rain, garth greenwell worst of the month: death of the author, nnedi okorafor

5* reads:

small rain, garth greenwell

4.5* reads:

a short stay in hell, steven l. peck

4* reads:

tales from the café, toshikazu kawaguchi

3.5* reads:

katabasis, r.f. kuang

iron flame, rebecca yarros

2.5* reads:

death of the author, nnedi okorafor

currently reading:

the unplugged hours, hannah brencher

you, caroline kepnes

Although there is still a month and a bit of 2024 to go, and it's entirely possible that one of us will find another novel we absolutely adore, we wanted to give you, our lovely customers, a peek at the collection of fiction we couldn't stop talking about this year. Our staff is a varied lot with diverse tastes (luckily our customers are just as delightfully quirky) and we hope there's something for everyone in this round-up of titles.

Cindy, Laurie, Nancy AND Caitlin all loved Liz Moore's The God of the Woods, with its historical setting, secrets galore, and rich people doing very bad things. If you're in the mood for a thriller set in the '70's this will satisfy.

As for Table for Two, by Amor Towles, Brad says that the concluding 200-page novella of this short story collection is "worth the price of admission", continuing the story of Rules of Civility. He was also charmed to discover the only published mystery of famed Winnie-the-Pooh author A. A. Milne. The Red House Mystery is for those of you longing for a perfect locked room whodunnit from the Golden Age of Mysteries.

For a contemporary thriller, Cindy highly recommends Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera, saying, "Lucy Chase, exonerated in the murder of her best friend, is mortified when a popular (and handsome) true crime podcaster opens a new investigation that thrusts her into national and community scrutiny all over again. Moving back and forth between the events that led to the crime and this new investigation, old friendships and relationships are reconsidered. Let the neighborly finger-pointing begin! Again."

Or, if a week on Cape Cod with your adult kids AND your aging parents in the height of summer sounds appealing (or at the least, amusing to read about), Laurie and I both loved Sandwich by Catherine Newman. Funny, poignant, and perfect for book clubs, this is a short book that packs a punch.

My personal top read of 2024 is The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley. Try this smart and thought-provoking debut if you like time travel, handsome Arctic explorers, and shady government shenanigans.

One of Caitlin's favorites from this year is Small Rain, by Garth Greenwell, a book she calls, "Magnificent! A tender novel about healing, care-giving, and poetry." She also loved Us Fools, by Nora Lange, a heartbreaking yet humorous story about two sisters growing up in the Midwest during the 1980's farm crisis. And check out the testimonials at the front for Caitlin's quote!

Nancy and Caitlin can't stop talking about Fire Exit by Morgan Talty. Caitlin says, "A long kept family secret, inheritance, guilt and mental illness combine into one outstanding novel." While Nancy adds, "I can't say enough good things about this book and author. Incredible writing!"

Becca and I got to buddy read and write a blog about The Spellshop, the coziest of cozy fantasies. This one is for readers who want a warm hug of book with a dollop of whimsy. Warning, it will make you crave toast and jam.

And (in my opinion) our favorite fiction isn't complete without an exceptional romance. Ready or Not, by Cara Bastone was a fantastic, surprise pregnancy, friends-to-love romance. I absolutely loved these characters and all their emotions. Plus, the audiobook is one of the best I've listened to this year.

Check out the link to see our complete list and, as always, we're happy to give you even more recommendations!

2024: Our Favorite Fiction

Up next, our Favorite Nonfiction of 2024!

small rain // garth greenwell

first published: 2024 read: 01 september 2025 - 09 september 2025 pages: 306 format: e-book

genres: fiction; literary fiction; contemporary; lgbtq+ (gay) favourite character(s): alivia least favourite character(s): didn't have one first line(s): "they asked me to describe the pain but the pain defied description, on a scale of one to ten it demanded a different scale."

rating: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 thoughts: small rain is easily up there as one of the best books i've read so far this year. i'd certainly also want to rank it as among the most personal, the most intimate. it is a beautiful work of autofiction, and i was captured by both the writing, and the way the author encapsulated feelings and experiences associated with illness and hospitalisation that i've had but haven't put into words.

i really loved the way it was written. the stream of consciousness style was perfect for the story that was told; i can't think of any way to better capture the experience of a sudden traumatic illness. i know the author has doubled down on this being a work of pure fiction, but the similarities to his own life are far too close and too numerous to be coincidental. but i feel the book was far better - richer and truer - for him having drawn so closely from his own life experience.