State of the ARC is a monthly meme temporarily hosted by Sarah at All The Book Blog Names Are Taken meant to motivate you to finish up your long overdue ARCs (Advanced or Early Reader Copies). This is its original intention, while some bloggers have tweaked it a bit for their own purposes, such as just keeping ARCs in order by due dates. Or you can just be a hot mess like me who sometimes misses publishing dates (or ignores them altogether) and needs a way to stay organized on what has been read, reviewed, or is still begging for attention. Thank you to Evelina @ Avalinah’s Books for coming up with this super helpful monthly meme.

I finished September with 14 ARCs left to be read. 

October, or ARCtober, as I like to think of it, was a smashing success. I’ve continued to reduce how many books I’ve requested, while reading as many ARCs as I could. In fact, I managed to halve my reading list, which is something I’m really happy about. My ratio went up to 96%, and I’m feeling so good about this. I started reading my 2023 ARCs, and only have one outstanding in November, which I just got approved for at the very end of October. This is just motivating me to do even better for the rest of the year.

I got approved for 8 new books in October:

• The Institution by Helen Fields
• When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb
• Vinyl Resting Place by Olivia Blacke
• Locust Lane by Stephen Amidon
• Untethered Sky by Fonda Lee
• Queen Among the Dead by Lesley Livingston
• Damsel by Evelyn Skye
• Emperor’s Fate by Alex Gough

These are the ARCs that I read and reviewed, with links to my reviews:

• Winterland by Rae Meadows — see my review here.
• A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw — see my review here.
• Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales — see my review here.
• When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb — see my review here.
• Vinyl Resting Place by Olivia Blacke — see my review here.
• The Villa by Rachel Hawkins — see my review here.
• City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita — see my review here.
• Phaedra by Laura Shepperson — see my review here.
• Better the Blood by Michael Bennett — see my review here.
• Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett — see my review here.
• Locust Lane by Stephen Amidon — see my review here.
• Cheddar Late Than Dead by Linda Reilly — see my review here.

Here are the ARCs I still have to read:

• Emperor’s Fate by Alex Gough
• Queen Among the Dead by Lesley Livingston
• Nocturne by Alyssa Wees
• My Dear Henry: A Jekyll & Hyde Remix by Kalynn Bayron
• Damsel by Evelyn Skye
• The Institution by Helen Fields
• The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth
• Untethered Sky by Fonda Lee
• Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez
• Pieces of Me by Kate McLaughlin

Which ARCs are you excited about this month?