Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme, hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books & Dani @ Literary Lion, where we discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts.
This week’s Let’s Talk Bookish topic comes at the perfect time! This week I shared my fall book recommendations, my fall TBR, and a fall-themed book tag. This topic has inspired me to think more about seasonal reading, and what makes a book a fall read versus a summer read, for example.
So what makes a book a fall read? There are many things for me. I like a fall book to either be cozy or absolutely terrifying/thrilling. I want a fall book to be completely immersive, and this is the time of year I am most likely to read books over 500 pages. I don’t know if it is because it is nearing the end of the year and I have already reach my Goodreads’ goal, but I feel less pressure to read 10+ books a month once October hits. Give me all the tomes! I want to sit on the couch with a hot chocolate and candles lit while reading a book that transports me to another place and is completely atmospheric. This is why I am more likely to read fantasy/SciFi during the fall. I also love a good classic this time of year, and I hope to read both Jane Eyre and Rebecca in October!
What about other seasons? It is interesting because I definitely lean more towards contemporary novels and romance during the summer months; however, I do not feel as though the winter or spring has much of an affect on my reading. Spring feels so short here in Canada that it barely registers with me, and I think I simply continue to read the same kinds of books during the winter as I do in the fall.
Do holidays affect my reading? I think the only holidays that have any affect on my reading are Christmas, Halloween, and, to a lesser extent, Valentine’s Day. This is a relatively new development, as I never read a Christmasy book until I started blogging. Last year I read 10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston, and it really helped to put me in the holiday spirit! I think we are all going to need some help with that this year, and I have been adding so many Christmasy books to my TBR, which I will share with you in November! There are so great ones coming out this year. To me, fall books and Halloween-themed books tend to blend together. I always try to read a witchy book and a thriller in the month of October. As for Valentine’s Day, I do try to read at least a couple of romances in February!
Final Thoughts
Evidently, seasons do have an effect on my reading, but that has definitely been influenced by the book community. Before I started blogging, I don’t remember ever giving much thought to the type of book I was reading during certain times of the year. While I do think that reading with the seasons has enhanced by reading experiences in some small ways, if the mood hits and I want to pick up a contemporary romance in October, the fact that it is fall will not stop me from doing so. It is simply that my mood tends to align with the season!
What are your thoughts on seasonal reading? Is it something you do? Also, does the spring affect your reading at all? I would be curious to know!
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Seasonal reading is awesome. However, for some reason I never really do any Spring or Autumn reading. 😉 lol But in Summer and Winter I tend to read season appropriate books. If its Summer, I want to see beaches, vacations etc and if its Winter I want to love reading stories that revolve around New Year or Christmas. It really gets me in the right mood to deal with those seasons. 🙂
I get that!! I have a feeling I will be reading many Christmasy books this year. Do you have any favourites?
I have many. 🙂 One Day in December by Josie Silver was really good. And Let It Snow by John Greene and two other authors. Let It Snow by Nancy Thayer was also a good one. They are romantic comedies, which happens to be my fav genre. 🙂
Thank you!! I love romcoms at Christmas time, so this is perfect!
You are most welcome 🙂 <3 This is the 9th book and came out last December. I haven't had the chance to read it yet.
Also, Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella is on my TBR. 🙂
Ohhh I have read some of the Shopaholic books but not this one!
Love a seasonal read – it just gets me more excited for that time of year! Jane Eyre is a perfect autumn read – and I’m so excited for the Netflix Rebecca adaptation we’re getting this October!
I am hoping to read both of those in October!
Hope you enjoy them! 🙂
Yes Christmas, Halloween, and even Valentine’s Day always make me want to assign a related TBR to them! Reading books similar to the holidays make it so much more special to experience 🙂 Great discussion!
Here’s my Let’s Talk Bookish post if you’d like to give it a look!
I agree! I get more excited about holidays when I read certain books around that time!
I’ve never considered whether or not the seasons affect my reading choices, but I’m inclined to say that they do. Like you, I like books that are immersive and transport me to a different place, but even more so during autumn. I live in Scotland and the weather isn’t always great, especially during the colder months. There’s nothing better than losing myself in a good book and blocking out the bad weather raging outside my window. I also read a lot more horror during autumn and winter too. I’ve tried to read horror novels while sitting out on my balcony in summer, but it’s just not the same as being curled up on the sofa on a dark evening with a cup of tea or hot chocolate 😂 Great post!
Loved reading all your thoughts. You’re so right about horror in the summer. It’s not the same at all!
I’m in Northern Ontario in Canada, so I definitely relate to the cold weather!
I don’t think the season has any real effect on the books I read. I live in Florida so we don’t have real “seasons” here. All we get is sun, rain, and heat.
That makes complete sense!
Personally I do not read seasonally, but I do think I get a bit influenced by the book community! If everyone is reading fluffy romances, I probably want to read those as well haha!
(www.evelynreads.com)
Haha I get that 100%!
I feel like a total outlier here! The only experience I can relate to is wanting a light read for beach reading. Otherwise I read my usual fare all year long!
You’re not alone!
I used to think that I wasn’t much of a seasonal reader, but I definitely think that I am now. I agree with you that the bookish community probably has played a factor in that because I’ve noticed that influencers recommend specific books at specific times. Since it’s fall where I am, there are a lot of videos and blog posts about fall recommendations and what other people are wanting to read now. I am a mood reader so I constantly am having a debate about the books I am in the mood to read and the ones that I feel like I should read because of the season.
The book community is a huge influence!! I’m a mood reader as well, but the weather does have a huge effect on my mood.
I don’t think I do seasonal reading with the exception of choosing at least one book that’s light and fast in the summer. I’ll have to give this some thought. The idea reminds me of travel reading. I often choose a book that takes place in the same location I’m visiting. Living in Michigan, winters can be long and harsh. Perhaps a snowy-setting in an uplifting book will help me cope with the sunless days.
Oh I didn’t think about travel reading. I do the same thing!
I’m in Northern Ontario so I get the harsh winters!
I did a discussion post about seasonal reading some time ago where I confess that I definitely belong to the group of seasonal readers 🙈 I am not much of a moody reader but more of a seasonal one. The weather and season seems to play a big role or at least influences me in what I want to read and when. Complex fanatsy novels and magical realism for winter, thrillers, mysteries and books about riddles and co in fall, etc. Great post, Kristin!
That is interesting! It’s funny how the weather can affect us in many ways, including our reading. I love magical realism all year round, but essentially in the winter.
I feel like I started doing seasonal reading when I started blogging, too – more spooky, atmospheric books in October, holiday reads in December. Maybe longer books or historical fiction in the winter time. I don’t think spring really affects my reading, though!
Same for me. Historical fiction is great in the winter!
Fall is the season where I’m most likely to have seasonal reading preferences. I always try to keep creepy books for the month of October and I am extra careful with the order, trying to gradually go from spooky to terrifying ^^
I would say I’m the same way. Fall definitely affects my reading most! I love that you have an order of spookiness!
Before I started blogging I read whatever I wanted to despite what season we were in. Since I started blogging I still do that but Halloween and Christmas definitely affect what I’m reading in those months to an extent.
Yes! I relate to this. I definitely do more holiday reading now.
The only time I really do seasonal reading is in the summer when I’ll read a lot more contemporary than I normally do. I typically read more fantasy and thriller books anyway, but I guess they do kind of pick up more in the fall months. I have also noticed that I tend to read a lot more in the cooler months of the year, because I’d rather be inside, curled up in a fuzzy blanket than spending a lot of time outside.
That’s such a great point about reading more! There does seem like there’s more time to read during the colder months.
Tons of people pegged romance/contemporary as summer reads and I don’t understand quite why…but I totally agree! There’s just something about romance and fluffy contemporaries that screams summer!
Right?! They just work perfectly. Can’t explain it!