tomes & tombs | a bookish bucket list for autumn
Hello again, dear friends, and a very happy September to y’all! Seeing as it is now late September and we are officially in autumn, y’all just know I’m ready for some fall-time fun! Which is why I’ve created an autumnal bucket list and paired each bucket list item with a reading prompt! That’s right—this autumn I’m hoping to get in all kinds of fun activities, as well as some good reading! So without any further ado, let’s dive in and see what I’ve got planned for this season 🎃
decorate my evil villain lair home for fall and halloween // read a book with a prominent villain
The first item on this autumnal bucket list is decorating for autumn and for Halloween. After all, every evil, villainous mad scientist (i.e. me) needs their perfect spooky lair! So, of course, I’ll be spookying up my own lair! That’s right, it’s time to break out the pumpkins and fake cobwebs, the witch signs for the front yard, the hanging ghosts, and the lanterns!
For this pairing, I’d like to read Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer. I’ve seen the author of Assistant to the Villain talking about it on TikTok for the last year or so, and that really has sparked my interest! The premise seems so cute and a little spoopy—just perfect to kick off the autumnal season!
throw a “monster mash” // read a monster-themed book
I’d also love to throw an autumnal themed event for my friends. It doesn’t have to be a traditional party, either, it could be a fall themed game night or an autumnal arts and crafts get together! Maybe even an autumnal tea party picnic in the park! Whatever it is, though, it’s gonna be a monster mash of a blast!!
Obviously, I just had to choose a monster themed book to pair with this goal, which is why I chose to go with My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine. I just purchased an audiobook copy of this spoopy romcom and I’m sooooo excited to get to it! Plus, I recently saw Mel from the booktube channel MelReads give My Roommate is a Vampire a glowing review, basically saying it’s a really fun, silly, and spoopy romcom!
attend the renaissance festival // finish a fantasy tome
Despite the dreary weather, there are lots of fun autumnal events that take place yearly in the DMV (DC/Marlyand/Virginia) region of the US, where I live! One of those fun events happens to be the Maryland Renaissance Festival, which I’m hoping to attend for the first time ever with one of my good friends! I’ve never been to a renaissance fair/festival before, so I’m super excited to get all dressed up and see what it’s all about!
And, of course, I figure I should read a fun fantasy in honor of the event, so why not finish up Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. It has action, it has adventure, it has romance, and it even has dragons—the ultimate fnatasy creature, in my humble opinion! Seems like the perfect read to get me in the right midset for the ren fair!
find some new cafes to study in with a good chai // read a dark academia
Of course, autumn brings the beginning of the school year, which means I’m now on the hunt for cozy little study spots! Fortunately for me, my mom’s work offices just moved to a historic district right on the river, and there are so many little cafes there! I’d love to try them out and see which ones I like when it comes to grabbing a good ol’ cup of chai and sitting down to study for a while. Moreover, seeing as I live in the Mid Atlantic region of the US, in a state that has mountains, swamps, plateaus, foresty hills and valleys, lots of rivers, and a big ol’ ocean coastline, around here autumn brings hurricane season. All this to say that in my neck of the woods, autumn is a very dreary and rainy season, wherein gloominess abounds. It really is the perfect seasonal atmosphere for cozying up inside with a warm drink and studying or reading.
Naturally, since this bucket list item involves studying, I knew I just had to pair it with reading a dark academia! I’m thinking I’m gonna go with The Whispering Dark by Kelly Andrew, which has been on my TBR for about a year now, so it’s about damn time. I’m especially looking forward to this dark academia fantasy as it’s written by a deaf author and stars a deaf main character—yay for more disability representation in fantasy!!!
bake and/or cook some autumnal treats to go with my reading // a cozy fantasy
This autumn I’d love to make more home cooked meals and also try my hand at baking. I have a recipe list in my Notion database that has a ton of autumnal recipes listed and I definitely want to make at least three of those recipes per month. I think first up on my list will be making a harvest salad and some autumnal soups, and possibly baking pumpkin bread if I’m able—I can’t wait!
I feel like this bucket list item pairs really well with reading a cozy fantasy, so that’s what I plan on doing. And! It only seemed right to read The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna for this one! I’ve actually already read about 20% of this book and I can confirm that it’s very cute and cozy and perfect for the season of autumn!
cozy up with friends to solve a puzzle or two // read a mystery/thriller
I’ve always felt that autumn is the perfect time for solving puzzles and riddles and mysteries! And—just my luck!—I’ve been dying to work on my copy of Cain’s Jawbone and/or start on my little bookshelf diorama, so there’s no better time then now, right?! I’d love to work on either or both of these little puzzles with a friend or two. Maybe I’ll host a mystery/puzzle/riddle themed game night or something!
I think the perfect TBR pairing for this activity is definitely my new obsession, Purple Hyacinth. I recently discovered this intrigue filled and action packed webcomic thanks to Ritz’s review of it and I’ve become so addicted to it!! Fortunately, there’s a MASSIVE back catalogue of episodes, which I absolutely cannot wait to rummage through!
read in a cemetery with an autumn harvest themed picnic // read a gothic fantasy
I’ve mentioned my strange love of cemeteries before, so maybe this bucket list item comes as no surprise. But for those of you who are a bit newer to my blog…I have a deep love of taking walks and spending time in cemeteries. I find them so peaceful and calming and, ironically, I feel like cemeteries are places of so much love because they’re places where people go to visit people they love so much, even long after those people are gone. I also feel like summer and autumn are perfect seasons for cemetery lounging (for lack of a better term)! Plus I’ve really been needing to find some peace of mind in a quiet place lately, so a cemetery day would be perfect. I’d even love to take a little harvest picnic and my headphones with me to whatever cemetery I end up going to, so I can make a little outting of it.
I think gothic fantasy is the perfect genre to go with this bucket list item—because have you ever seen the beauty that is a gothic cemetery?!!—so I’m adding The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten to add to my list. The Foxglove King seems to me kind of like the ultimate gothic fantasy—I mean it’s got death magic, deified royalty, poisons, and a French gothic feeling atmosphere! What more could you ask for?!
Alrighty, dear friends, that’s all for today! I hope you enjoyed and maybe added a new activity to your fall bucket list or a new book to your TBR! Now if you’ll excuse me, I gotta get started on this bucket list, so until next time, dear friends…
spill the beans, friends
- What are your plans for this autumn?
- What’s on your autumn 2023 TBR?
this is such a unique way to choose tbrs i’m maybe loving it?? ALSO OMG YOUR AUTUMN SOUNDS SO EVENTFUL AND FUN LIKE ID KILL TO ATTEND THAT MONSTER MASH AND THE RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL. have the best time, lila!!!!!
AAAH THANK YOU SO MUCH ANOUSHKA!! i wish there was a way i could make a online version of the “monster mash”, lol! ah well, maybe next year i’ll figure out how! i hope you have a spectacular and spooky halloween and autumn!! 👻
I love this! I should definitely take up the challenge of finding a new cafe to study in with good chai, and I am also excited to bake some pumpkin bread. Hopefully I will also make some other fall-themed foods. My autumn books include hell bent, everyone knows your mother is a witch, and lavender house.
Ooohhh, your autumn sounds awesome, both reading- and bucket-list-wise! And you’re definitely not alone – I also love taking walks in cemeteries 😂 They’re just so peaceful, and I also kind of like the idea of there still being life and happiness around me once I’m dead and beneath the ground… Only having mourners sobbing over my grave would be the saddest thing ever! I know, I’m weird 🙃
But good luck with all your endeavors!
OH love this post idea so much! I need to read A Whispering Dark at some point, as well, it’s been on my TBR for AGES and it sounds really good!! 🙂
Well, for starters this post made me realize I need to be taking greater advantage of my fall! I do have plans to do our big local haunted house with some friends…well, I say “plans” but they’re very loose. So I need to tighten that down. I’m a huge baby with scary things so I need to get my fix of screaming, flailing, and panicked jumps in before time runs out!
I’ve always wanted to go to a Renaissance Fair, too. I’ve driven by plenty but I’ve never stopped to actually go to one. Which seems odd, as they feel very on brand for me.
Also, I really loved the format of this piece! To pair a reading list with a bucket list of activities was so fun and it got me thinking what I’d be reading if I was doing these things myself (save the baking/cooking one…that, that wouldn’t end well for anyone XD). I hope you’re enjoying your fall!