lately with lila august 2025 | fig harvest time

Hello again, dear friends! I hope all is well for you and if it’s not, then I hope brighter days head your way soon! Can you believe August is over, we’ve officially entered “the ‘ber months,” and the year is only a quarter away from ending??? I’m beginning to think that time is a concept that simply isn’t meant for me (then again, that might just be the ADHD talking) 😂 August did indeed “slip away like a moment in time,” I suppose, taking the last rays of summer with it. Anyhoo, enough of my wistfulness surrounding the passage of time! August was mostly a quiet month, but I did manage to post a few things and finish a book, among other entertainment-related things. So let’s check out what went down…

I was in the mood for something cozy and autumnal, so I picked up where I left off in A Dark and Secret Magic by Wallis Kinney and flew through the entire thing by the end of August! This book had the exact dose of autumn coziness that I needed! It’s got modern witches and a shadowy and handsome necromancer from a rival coven and cozy cottages and autumnal activities and adventures and it’s even got a countdown to Halloween—it was the perfect way to kick off the season early!

Rating: what i’m currently reading

To lean into my autumnal urges, I picked up two books: Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood and A Theory of Dreaming by Ava Reid. Rewitched is another cozy, witchy contemporary romantasy and A Theory in Dreaming is the sequel to the dreary, dark, atmospheric novel A Study in Drowning, which I read and loved a few years back when it was first released. I’m not far into either, but at the moment I’m enjoying what I’ve read and looking forward to continuing in both books!

I also ended up picking up The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson on the final day of August and got totally sucked in and now must gobble up the whole thing. So, of course, I’m also hoping to at least make significant progress in it—if not finish it entirely—by the end of September.

Honestly, other than the three books I’m currently reading, I have no idea what else I might want to read. I’m in quite a mood for coziness, so I’m leaning towards picking up another cozy fantasy if I have any time left for other books, but I don’t know which cozy fantasy I might choose…

for readers

• Tasya gave her thoughts on recent publishing trends and her struggle to find recently published books that she enjoys
• 24hhryabookblog mulled over the “fast fashion” of books and how it impacts publishing
• Rebecca discussed the problem with booktok recommendations
• Literary Gluttony put together a playlist for Marissa Meyer’s Gilded
• Sumedha talked about her reading tracking habits
• Emma ranked Emily Henry’s books
• Line rambled about romance in books
• Ely suggested short books for Women in Translation Month
• Candyce interviewed author Samantha Sotto Yambao
• For her 8th blogaversary, Clo shared eight books she wouldn’t have read without her blog
• Nicole explained why she reads so many books at a time
• Anna told us how she rates books across genres
• On the flipside, Krysta talked over how she interprets star ratings
• Eustacia highlighted some books and podcasts which feature dragons
• April asked, “why are there so many special editions of unreleased books?“
• Maria ranted about how everyone’s reading journey is valid
• Becky highlighted SFF books featuring characters with disabilities
• Leonie coached us on how to read critically in the age of media illiteracy (Video)
• Gina Lucia mulled over the question of “is buying books therapy?” (Video)
• Jananie talked over “the mainstream-ification of reading, rise of anti-intellectualism, and decline of critical thinking” (Video)
• Caroline explained how to curate your reading taste so you can stop reading books you hate (Video)
• Laura Elise recommended books that perfected the art of yearning (Video)
• Jessa Grace talked booktok, ableism, and the Age of Scorpius controversy (Video)
• Elizabeth taught us how to read critically (Video)

for fun

• Sumedha invited us to listen to music with her for a week

My August started out with a really devastating event, as one of our cats, Clementine, was put to sleep on August 1st. It was a really difficult decision, and it has been hard to process, but I’m taking my time and giving myself permission to feel my grief while still living life fully.

Aside from Clementine’s passing, August was pretty quiet.

One nice thing was that our fig tree gave us so much fruit this past month! It was kinda a surprise because August is usually the hottest month here in Virginia, but this year it’s been ridiculously cool (like, in the upper 70sF) and I guess maybe that’s what allowed our fig tree to finally have a ton of fruit? Maybe?? Honestly, I’m not good at gardening so I dunno for sure, but what I can say is that it was a sweet (literally) surprise and I’m not complaining!

At the end of the month, a new semester began, which was exciting. This semester I’m taking Choir again, as well as Sociology of Race and Ethnicity (which is a 12-week course that begins in early September), both of which I’m looking forward to.

With the current military and police occupation of D.C. it’s going to be hard to go into the city, which curbs a lot of my potential plans. Police, ICE, and the national guard have set up multiple checkpoints in each neighborhood of the city, and they’re starting to stop anyone at random on the streets and in Metro stations to demand they present valid ID and proof of citizenship. It’s a fascist mess and it doesn’t look like it’ll be over anytime soon. Seeing as many of my friends and I are POC and given the fact that my ID is outdated and I need to get a new one (ugh), I don’t think any of us will be going into the city unless necessary anywhere in the near future.

That said, fortunately there are a decent number of events and activities here in northern Virginia and also in southern Maryland. My friend and I actually managed to snag tickets to the Maryland Renaissance Festival (which is apparently considered one of the best renaissance festivals on the east coast of the US), which is a miracle considering tickets usually sell out fast prior to the first day of the festival since it’s so popular! I’ve never been to a renaissance festival before, so I’m really excited to get all dressed up and to see what it’s all about. I just know it’s gonna be so much fun!!

As I mentioned above, I’ve been feeling really autumnal lately, and I also want to lean into that feeling when it comes to activities and events. I’d love to go to a local farm and pick apples and/or flowers to start off the fall season. I dunno if that’ll actually happen, but it’s what I’m aiming for.

Other than that and the normal school and work activities, there’s not too much I’ve got planned for September as of yet. Regardless, I’m feeling optimistic about the month to come and I can only hope it lives up to that expectation!

How was your August 2025? Did you read anything memorable? Is there anything you’re looking forward to coming up in September 2025? What’s on your TBR for the upcoming month?

Learn more the author of this post:

Lila @ Hardcover Haven

Lila is a 30 year old anthropology student and lover of literature who's been book blogging for an eternity. Her hobbies include reading, singing, writing, arts and crafts, and snuggling her two cats, Snoopy and Clementine.