Hey there! It’s our last Whatcha Reading of the year. Here’s how we’re wrapping the year up:
Sarah: I am reading The Smoke Thief ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) because after my conversation with Elizabeth Hoyt, I realized I either hadn’t read it, or it was so long ago that I don’t remember. I’m also still reading The Alpha of Bleake Isle, ( A | BN ) and, well, many other things I was reading before. But I’m on vacation now so abundant reading time is miiiiiiine mwahahaha.
Shana: I’m lingering over the epilogue of A Man for Mrs. Claus by Rebekah Weatherspoon. It was a cute palate cleanser.
Elyse: I’m reading A Crown of Ivy and Glass ( A | BN | K ) which falls into the Noun of Stuff and Things category of Romantasy.
Carrie: I’m finishing The Pairing ( A | BN | K | AB ) and loving every second of it.
Tara: I just finished The Amaranthine Law by Gun Brooke ( A | BN | K | AB ) and it’s one I’ll be thinking about for a while.
Claudia: A little lost and busy so I picked up some Christmas re-reads, A Christmas Promise (Mary Balogh) ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) and Your Wicked Heart (novella by Meredith Duran) ( A | BN | K | G | AB ).
How are you capping of your reading this year? Let us know in the comments!
Wrapping up the year with some very satisfying reads…
Michelle Douglas’s TEMPTED BY HER GREEK ISLAND BODYGUARD a fabulous sweep-you-away romance between interior designer Janie Tierney and bodyguard Zach Cartwright. While their initial meetings didn’t exactly see them in agreement, the business-only Zach is impressed by Janie’s talent and work ethic, coming to realize that her smile is a reflection of her kindness and determination, not a sign of weakness. Michelle Douglas’s characters are a delight to read and their emotional journey is so satisfying. This is another for the keeper shelf!
And hit some more holiday reads hard:
Amy Lane’s BOWLING FOR TURKEYS is a warm, sweet ode to love and friendship and allowing good people to love and care for you and care for them in return.
Amy Aislin’s A GIFT-WRAPPED HOLIDAY is part of her Lighthouse Bay series but stands well alone.
IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS is an entertaining story by Julianna Keyes about two rival travel writers who are sent on assignment to Noelville to experience its unique Christmas magic and secure the promotion to senior writer with the story they write…. Eve and Will definitely aren’t the Christmas magic type, nor are they particularly getting along, but Ms Keyes gives readers an in on their own holiday journey. Fun and festive…I liked this but didn’t love it.
Heidi Cullinan’s Minnesota Christmas series, LET IT SNOW, SLEIGH RIDE, and WINTER WONDERLAND sees three burly lumberjack types find love with men they wouldn’t have originally expected. I found these stories quite moving, and found the mix of small-town support and the men’s very real seeming concerns hard to put down.
Wishing you all a great close to this year and looking forward to seeing what you read in the coming year!
Last WAYR, @AnneUK recommended WILL THEY OR WON’T THEY by Ava Wilder. Enjoyed it a lot. I like that it was more about their lives as working actors then them being famous.
THE COLLABORATORS by Michael Idov. A disgraced spy and sometime actress/heiress race across Europe to find the truth of her missing father and his murdered colleagues. Set in a specific point in time–just after the pandemic lockdowns but before the war in Ukraine–the spy muses a lot on the modern Russian state. Enjoyed both the political commentary and the spy hijinks.
Victoria Goddard released a new story in her Greenwing & Dart series, “Balancing Stone.” I just finished reading it and of course now I want to re-read some of the series. I also bought print copies of the Sisters Avramapul trilogy (not realizing they are essentially stories, not even novellas), so I may read those instead.
Despite the stacks of library books coming due, I’ve been re-reading pretty much all month. The most recent include THE CALCULATING STARS, by Mary Robinette Kowal (in anticipation of the new Lady Astronaut book next year), A CLOSED AND COMMON ORBIT (completing my re-read of Becky Chambers’ Wayfarer series), SWORDHEART by T. Kingfisher (of which I had forgotten many plot detail, especially that Bishop Beartongue appears, possibly my favorite of all her characters), and just yesterday, LM Bujold’s DIPLOMATIC IMMUNITY, which inspired me to finally find a copy of FALLING FREE.
I finished THE TAKEDOWN by Carlie Walker, which was a spy story mixed with a holiday romance.
Up next, I will probably read THE MOST WONDERFUL CRIME OF THE YEAR by Ally Carter or maybe FULL SPEED TO A CRASH LANDING by Beth Revis.
I’ll probably watch a few last holiday rom-coms this weekend too.
I hope everyone is having a great holiday season. Cheers! 🙂
Guys, I have just been chewing through books lately, nonstop. Mostly just cozyish British set mysteries, particularly ones I can find on Kindle Unlimited. Partially b/c I was on vacation and partially b/c I’m trying to limit my intake of news and YouTube. I’m also trying to give more mediocre books a chance. I know that sounds crazy, but I’ve been mulling it over for a while. I feel like I hit at some point after the pandemic that if every book I read wasn’t the most amazing thing *ever* and didn’t immediately suck me in, I’d put it down for something else, and something else and something else. I hated what it was saying about my attention span. Yes, it’s good not to waste time reading bad books or books that you hate, but I realized I read a lot of C+/B- reads when I was growing up simply b/c there were fewer alternatives. I wanted to get to that mindset, at least somewhat.
Since a lot has been ‘okay, not mind blowing’ I’m just listing my favorites since the last Whatcha Reading.
THE CARDTURNER by Louis Sachar. This is about a teenage boy that has to help his blind uncle by being his cardturner during bridge tournaments, but like HOLES it’s about more than one thing. This book is very funny and moving in parts and it took a wild turn after the halfway point and I turned to my husband and said “great, now I’m going to have to stay up and finish this book.” I don’t think it quite reaches the brilliance of HOLES but I enjoyed it. Fair warning, it has a lot about bridge. A lot a lot. Sachar wants everyone to love it as much as he does. He tries to teach you bridge through the book and I’m not sure it works, bearing in mind I don’t have “game brain” and refuse to play any traditional card games but cribbage and poker. I reached a point where I said “I’m going to stop trying to get this” and just let the bridge minutia wash over me, like sailing jargon in a Patrick O’Brian novel.
ROCK PAPER SCISSORS by Alice Feeney – finally a domestic thriller that I don’t hate! I want to like these, but they often disappoint me. Yes, this still had a bonkers twist at the end, but I felt it was more earned and less obvious than some of the other ones I’ve read, YMMV. I feel like I might have to go back and relisten/reread to make sure she actually played completely fair, but it felt like she did in the moment. A couple are driving up to Scotland to see if they can repair their strained marriage. The husband is a famous screenwriter and he’s hiding a pretty big secret from the rest of the world. He has face blindness, meaning he can’t recognize anyone, not even the people he loves. They are snowed in a remote cottage and of course, spooky things start happening. There’s a lot of misdirection and flashbacks to early moments. Great, great atmosphere. I love a snowy creepy setting. I definitely liked this a lot better than DAISY DARKER, the first thing I read by this author. Also the narrator for the male character is Richard Armitage, if anyone is interested. . . Definitely not a traditional romantic/happy ending though.
And last but not least ‘The Christmas Book Hunt’ by Jenny Colgan. This is just a little bonbon of a short story (on Kindle Unlimited) about a woman who has promised her great-aunt that she will dig up a copy of a very rare book that the older woman loved in her childhood. Unbeknownst to our heroine, a bookseller’s apprentice is on her tail, looking for the same book. Of course they hit it off and he starts to worry what will happen when she finds out the truth. At times this was almost too sweet/manipulative but in the end, I did find real tears welling up. There’s not a lot to this and I wouldn’t recommend it as your first Jenny Colgan but if you like her already, this may be a fun little time filler. Some characters from THE CHRISTMAS BOOKSHOP make a small cameo.
Best wishes to a smooth end to 2024 for all!
Season’s greetings for all who celebrate. Life’s been a whirlwind of activities for the past two weeks, so that a number of the Christmas-themed romances I was hoping to finish by December 25 are still languishing around the 50% mark on my kindle. As for what I have had time to read:
Nicky James’s SYMPHONY OF SALVATION is an antagonists-to-lovers workplace romance between rival teachers at an exclusive private school in Canada. If you’ve read James’s earlier PROMISES OF FOREVER (my favorite book of 2024), you’ve already met Niles (who is the friend and former-lover of one the MCs of that book). Niles is a dedicated music teacher at Timber Creek Academy, he works tirelessly with his students, but has always felt less than because of his family’s dismissive attitude toward his chosen career in teaching and the fact that he does not have a PhD (which most of Timber Creek’s teachers do have). Enter August, a classical composer and conductor, who comes to Timber Creek Academy for a temporary teaching assignment while helping his daughter (a musical prodigy with illness and a troubled mother in her recent past) adjust to her new school. Niles is immediately sure that August covets his job, while August (who has absolutely no patience for students or even his own daughter) would rather be anywhere than Timber Creek. Despite their initial antagonism (and Niles’s not incorrect assumption that school administration would like to replace him with someone of August’s pedigree), the two men fall into lust then love, while navigating obstacles both internal (Niles’s skittishness, August’s closeted bi-sexuality) and external (the school’s snobbish director, the mental health issues of August’s ex, August’s complicated relationship with his non-verbal daughter). SYMPHONY OF SALVATION had a number of good elements: the MCs are older (early-to-mid forties), and it’s refreshing to see romance blossom between two people who have already been around the block a time or two; and I especially liked the way the story was able to correlate the creative musical impulse with growing feelings toward another person (I thought SofS did this even better than NOT ANOTHER LOVE SONG did); but I had a hard time really loving the book, primarily because of how utterly selfish and unsympathetic August was throughout most of it. He refuses to learn sign language to communicate with his daughter (as he says at one point, “I loved my daughter, but until recently, I’d never had to sacrifice anything for her benefit”); he is indifferent toward his students and completely without tact when providing feedback or instruction to them; and even his growing love for Niles is mitigated by his wish to remain in the closet. In addition to finding August cold and uncaring, I thought James’s decision to have him essentially disappear for a few months and then return a changed man (without us actually seeing any of the heavy emotional lifting involved) was a strange one. Recommended—but be prepared to find one of the MCs rather unappealing.
The key quote in Ainsley Booth’s THE REBOUND PLAN is: “There are lessons to be learned when you’ve invested your entire life in someone else’s entire life. And those lessons probably aren’t just for women who marry professional athletes but also for anyone for whom marriage is a trap.” The latest of Booth’s Off the Ice series of hockey romances is less a romance and more the story of a woman coming to the realization that her marriage is toxic and she has to end it. In fact, it is well into the second half of the book before the MCs are together in any meaningful way. If you’ve read the other books in the Off the Ice series, you are already familiar with Shannon, the wife a team captain Max and coordinator of the team WAGS (the wives & girlfriends group). There have been hints in the previous books that Max is both dismissive and contemptuous of Shannon (whose earlier life as the girlfriend of a billionaire is often fodder for Max’s disdain—and his envy), but things come to a head in THE REBOUND PLAN. Meanwhile, Max’s teammate Russ has long loved Shannon from afar but realizes it’s time for him to move on—the Rebound Plan is actually his idea, and a friend’s younger sister (I hope she will be an MC in a future book) offers to be his fake girlfriend when the team (and WAGS) arrive at Russ’s newly-purchased “cabin” for pre-season bonding. The plan quickly goes out the window as Russ begins to understand how much Max is hurting Shannon as she attempts to negotiate the obstacles of her husband’s cruelty, self-centeredness, and anger. Shannon and Russ—without doing anything of a physical nature—grow closer; and eventually there is a fraught MFM three-way with Max, Shannon, and Russ—but it is more Max showing Shannon off as a prize than anything erotic. I wasn’t sorry when Russ eventually loses his cool and gives Max the beat-down he deserves. THE REBOUND PLAN was a rather low-key romance. I recommend it, but it is much more interesting as the story of a woman coming into her own by leaving a poisonous relationship behind than in her steps in starting a new healthier one.
I continued my dive into Taylor Fitzpatrick’s hockey romances on AO3 by reading FOLLOW THE NORTH STAR, an m/m/m romance between teammates. Evan, one of Fitzpatrick’s gentle giants, authentically kind and caring, has had a crush on older teammate Roman since his rookie year. Roman has been careful not to encourage Evan’s feelings. But when Evan starts rooming with hot-headed, loud-mouthed Harry, and the two men obviously grow closer, Roman begins to regret his decision to keep away from Evan, even as he begins to see Harry in a new light. As is always the case with Fitzpatrick, what happens between the MCs is less about the physical experience (although there are some fairly explicit scenes) than the changes that occur in their interconnected emotional dynamics. One of the things I enjoyed about FOLLOW THE NORTH STAR was that we get to see a lot of Mike and Liam (MCs of THROWN OFF THE ICE), including scenes from Liam’s point-of-view (which only occurred at the end of THROWN OFF THE ICE).
My selection of recent books was JACKPOT!
Tessa Beiley’s Wreck the Halls had a steadfast MMC and a FMC who wanted a private life. Matthew Norman’s Charm City Rocks was every bit as charming as I expected. It’s always a pleasure for me to read about Baltimore. And Under Your Spell by Laura Wood had sister-love, a FMC recovering from the trauma caused by a careless father and despicable ex. Hmm. Main characters in each of these stories are musicians.
I read Remarkably Bright Creatures and am exceedingly glad that I’ve never eaten cephalopods. Explaining to a friend that I was still groggy at 11 a.m. because of the wonderful book I read through the wee hours, she told me that Sally Field will be playing the main character Tova in an upcoming movie. I said that Ms Fields isn’t old enough, and my friend pointed out that Ms Fields is older than we are. Oops.
I hope everyone is having a happy holiday season.
I’m working my way out of a reading slump, so I’ll admit I picked up a couple of books on Kindle Unlimited solely because it sounded like the sex would be hot. The Salacious Players Club series by Sara Cate follows the owners of a sex club and their forbidden relationships. Book 1 is PRAISE, in which our dom MMC discovers that his son’s ex-girlfriend’s kinks nicely align with his. Book 2 is EYES ON ME, in which our voyeur MMC realizes that his exhibitionist camgirl step-sister isn’t a little girl anymore. There’s some nice stuff here in terms of sex positivity, and because I’m being too critical of everything these days, I’ll put the snarkier criticisms behind a spoiler tag.
2. On a related note, I’ll admit that the amount of jealousy as a motivating factor made the older characters feel a lot younger than their stated ages.
3. I don’t have personal experience with depression, so I can’t say if the depiction in Book 2 was good or not, but there was a note of “being with her just makes me feel better” that is probably coming from a well meant place, but also didn’t quite land right with me either.
4. Between the age gaps and family histories, points for pairings that really are on the risque side of things. How long do you think it takes before their holiday gatherings stop being awkward?
5. The characters “mutter” 33 times in book 1 and 53 times book 2. Maybe if they’d learn to enunciate, they wouldn’t have so many communication problems.
Other books I’ve read since the last WAYR included:
THE SUMMER PROPOSAL by Vi Keeland (Kindle Unlimited). Standalone. Hockey player and business woman. The setup here is a little complicated, with the FMC currently being in a nominally open relationship. Her “not-quite-an-ex” placed a pause on their relationship when he took a job overseas, but she’s been too busy working to meet people. The book explores having to choose between what you thought you wanted and a new opportunity.
THE REBOUND PLAN by Ainsley Booth (Kindle Unlimited). Off the Ice book 3. This one also involves a love triangle of sorts, but the choices are more about navigating a way out of a bad situation. DiscoDollyDeb gave a better description above. I enjoyed it.
THE WALL OF WINNIPEG AND ME by Mariana Zapata. Standalone. Football player and his former assistant. The grumpiest of grumpy heroes.
MAKE IT SWEET by Kristen Callihan (Kindle Unlimited). Retired hockey player and an actress. I didn’t realize when I started, but it’s related to another book by the author, Dear Enemy, in that the FMC of this one is a former costar of the actor MMC of that one, but it can be read as a standalone. Both the MMC and FMC are recharging at an estate after finding themselves at turning points in their careers.
MERRY EVER AFTER by Tessa Bailey (Kindle Unlimited). Contemporary Short Story. It’s a sweet glimpse at a courtship between a farmer and the new girl in town.
Over the past few weeks I binged a lot of holiday-themed short stories and novellas (plus watching many Hallmark and Lifetime holiday movies). Started and DNFed several short reads that didn’t grab me in the first couple of chapters; finished several that were so-so.
Two stand-outs emerged from the pack of short reads:
JULIA CAN’T BUY HER GIRLFRIENDS JEWELRY by Melody Wiklund is a silly, fantasy-infused quick read about a woman with a string of supernatural girlfriends-turned-breakups after receiving Julia’s Christmas present (various forms of jewelry). There’s a bit of a surprise ending, too (although it’s not a big surprise).
ONE NIGHT, TWO HOLIDAYS by Ali Brady (name for co-authors Alison Hammer and Bradeigh Godfrey) turned this year’s confluence of Christmas and Hanukkah into a clever short romance. Jack is a medical resident getting ready to leave his Chicago apartment to spend Christmas with his family; Nessa is in her apartment (same building, different floor) getting ready to celebrate Hanukkah alone. A power outage forces them to spend time together, exchanging lots of information about each other’s holiday traditions and also falling for each other. The dialog is natural; the romance is sweet with a little bit of spice. It seems from the summaries that other books by this writing team are more women’s fiction than romance, but they have another romance slated for June 2025 that I’ll be looking for.
Also, I started THE MOST WONDERFUL CRIME OF THE YEAR by Ally Carter after seeing how many said (in the “Hanukkah Care Packages” comments) it was the SBTB recommendation they most appreciated. I’m about a third of the way in and I understand why everyone loves this book– me too!
Non-holiday books read:
WAKE UP, NAT AND DARCY by Kate Cochrane—the first book by this author. While I liked the characters and especially liked the heartfelt storytelling of the HEA in the last few chapters of this second-chance sapphic romance, the “bad communication” trope bugged me for much of the book.
The premise is that college hockey teammates Natalie (a freshman) and Darcy (a senior) pined for each other but had a bad breakup after their final championship-winning game, because Darcy wouldn’t admit to the other seniors that she was just starting a relationship with Nat. Then Darcy went on to Team Canada hockey and Nat joined Team USA, and the women were enemies on the ice for many years. Fifteen years after the breakup, they are reunited as a TV broadcasting team at the Winter Olympics. Their assignment is a series of segments where they try out several Olympic sports to show the audience that not even pro athletes are “naturals” at every challenging athletic competition. Darcy is looking for a bigger role on TV after three years at the network, and Nat is just looking for something new after being told she didn’t make the cut for the U.S. Olympic team.
What never seemed credible to me was that for 15 years, neither Nat nor Darcy had attempted to start a conversation about their bad breakup. Cochrane tries to provide reasons that neither woman tried to reach out or ask questions of the other (Darcy is embarrassed and always puts work first; Nat has a constant problem with thinking she’s been rejected) but throughout their banter and growing closeness on the TV set (noted by viewers who start the social media hashtag “#PuckingHotties”), I kept thinking “Why did they wait 15 years, and why don’t they just talk to each other NOW about what happened?”
There’s a second “why don’t they just talk to each other” plot twist late in the book, but fortunately both Nat and Darcy make better choices on the way to the HEA. Another entry in Cochrane’s “Puck Struck” universe is scheduled for late 2025; I’ll give that one a try despite my reservations about the NAT AND DARCY story.
WOULD YOU RATHER by Allison Ashley. I enjoyed the fake-marriage-turns-into-something- real plot. Noah and Mia have been friends since they were kids and next-door neighbors, now they work together at the architectural firm where Noah is a rising star and Mia is in a clerical role. She’s also coping with illness and waiting for a kidney transplant—so when she wins a scholarship that would allow her to pursue her dream of becoming a dietician, she can’t accept because she needs the health benefits from the job. Then Noah suggests they get married so Mia can quit working and use his insurance, and Mia reluctantly agrees.
Both Mia and Noah have past issues to overcome— the death of Noah’s older brother, Mia’s lingering dismay from learning (when her illness was diagnosed) that she is adopted, and her parents hid that fact from her. The slow burn romance is lovely and engaging as these MCs turn friendship into more, and learn to accept each other as full partners. This new-to-me author is a clinical oncology pharmacist, which leads to exceptional verisimilitude in the medical-related scenes. There’s a follow-up book focused on Mia’s and Noah’s best friends, so I’ll be looking for that one for future reading.
ABOUT LAST NIGHT by Laura Henry. This is a first romance from an author who has published several books in other genres as Melissa Lenhardt (women’s fiction, westerns, historicals). In this story, the one-night stand between Audrey and Toni is followed by an office collision (coffee spilled when they literally run into each other), followed by the realization that Toni and her sister, Greta, are the owners of the company that has hired Audrey and her twin sister, Willa, to work as business consultants… so lots of forced proximity and lots of sexual tension, along with hesitance from Audrey, who is dealing with the aftermath of a toxic past relationship and is reluctant to commit. I thought the dialog and character development were especially good—the conversations throughout the book were realistic, the banter was believable, and there were even conversations about the importance of having conversations when feelings get complicated. A follow-up romance between Greta and Willa is promised—I’m eager to read that one.
One more entry for this end-of-year report: I picked up my very old, unread paperback copy of WICKED by Gregory Maguire and decided I wanted to read it before I see the movie. Haven’t seen the stage version, either, but I thought I was aware of key differences (can’t stay spoiler-free for 30 years, right?)… and now that I’m halfway through the book, I’m pretty sure the biggest difference is going to be that I’m bored with the book and anticipate a very different experience with the movie. Maguire’s world-building is impressive– and incredibly didactic. However, I think I’ll power through and finish it so I can better appreciate how a great playwright and screenwriter like Winnie Holzman makes the adaptation better than the original.
Happy reading (in many genres) to all in 2025, and thank you, SBTB, for providing this forum!
Happy Holidays!
Until yesterday, I did not have any real reading time for a few weeks – as I always say, the holidays are like some kind of Hunger Games for many middle-aged women every year.
However, yesterday I read FUNNY STORY by Emily Henry in one sitting. It’s everything the SBTB review said – I highly recommend it. Thank you, SBTB – I will be digging into all your recs over the next few days.
I’m reading Andrea Penrose’s Wrexford and Sloane series; actually re-read the first 7 of the series and today I start on #8, the recently-released Murder at King’s Crossing. The found family aspects and character interplay are wonderful.
Then going to pick up where I left off (#7) on Ann Granger’s Mitchell and Markby series… I’m really enjoying the slooooowww burn, low key romance of these lovely mid-age adults in the midst of life changes and murder.
I requested Jennifer Estep’s Galactic Bonds series for the holiday. Galloping through the set with great glee. As a Regency read, I’m partway through Julie Wright’s An Inconvenient Letter which is a bit silly in the set up and family dynamics.
For non-fiction, I also quite enjoyed Killers of the King by Charles Spencer, tracking the fate of the regicides of Charles I. I’m also starting another prized gift, Oathbreakers by Matt Gabriele and David Perry. It’s everything you never needed to know that you need to know about the infighting that collapsed the Carolingian Empire.
Over the past two weeks ~
— I enjoyed The Holiday Trap by Roan Parrish. It featured two LGBT characters, with a mutual friend, who swap homes (in Maine and New Orleans) and who subsequently find romance.
— also enjoyed Vaz by Laurence Dahners which is a contemporary science fiction novel. Vaz is an extremely talented scientist with few social skills. The story begins when a new supervisor fires him (a decision that the higher ups soon regret), and he creates a basement laboratory. (Warning for violence).
— enjoyed the short romance novella You and Me and Atmosphere by K.L. Noone which features an astronaut and his partner, an animation artist. I could see rereading this.
— also enjoyed The Wandering Empath (The Soul Seer Saga) by Kestra Pingree, a fantasy in which an empath escapes from a prison with the help of others who have an agenda of their own.
— quite enjoyed Feline Protector (City Shifter Mysteries Book 1) by Sapphire Wolf; it’s urban fantasy in which a detective (a cougar shifter) is asked to prove the innocence of a detective with whom she has an adversarial relationship. He’s accused of killing an alpha wolf. I hope to read on in this series.
— enjoyed Inheritance: Dominion Book 1 by Lissa Kasey and would happily read more in this series. It’s the start of an angsty urban fantasy romance series featuring a (rather rare) male witch and his vampire lover.
— “The Stargazer’s Familiar” by Mary Jo Putney is a fun short story in the anthology A Constellation of Cats; it’s set in a vaguely medieval world and is narrated by a cat whose person (the court astronomer) is being threatened by a villain.
— Fragile as Glass by Pat Henshaw is a contemporary short m/m romance whose leads are a glass artist and a famous singer. It has a slight paranormal element.
— also enjoyed Promised Before Wind and Tide, a short work by Jackie Keswick, which featured two lovers reuniting after six years apart.
— quite enjoyed Liar City by Allie Therin which is described as a slow burn gay urban fantasy romance. (Slow burn might be something of a generous description as no flame has yet been sighted!) This murder mystery is set in an alternate Seattle in which empaths are variously feared, reviled, used, lusted after, and discriminated against. One of the leads is an empath; the other is a government agent named The Dead Man who specializes in cases dealing with empathy. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.
— enjoyed Honeymoon for One by Keira Andrews which begins with a man coming home early on the eve of his wedding to find his fiancé and best friend in bed. He ends up going on his planned honeymoon trip to Australia by himself where he connects with the driver of his tour bus.
— enjoyed reading Painting Happiness: Creativity with Watercolors by Terry Duncan (even though I do not use watercolors).
— enjoyed The 12 Kittens of Christmas by Amy Lane; this is a contemporary romance. A bartender (ex-serviceman) offers his couch to the new to the area and job hunting brother of his upstairs neighbor. The men find two kittens, then two abandoned cats, then a family of cats, then…. They bond as they attempt to find homes for the cats.
— also read a plethora of book samples.
The B+/A- list:
Last WAYR I forgot to include Lauren Connolly’s P.S. I HATE YOU, which I enjoyed a lot. Her dead brother has asked her to join with this best friend (who broke her heart when they were teenagers) to scatter his ashes at various national parks. Forced proximity and a shared grief.
Also just finished the first in J. Saman’s new series, UNDENIABLY CONVENIENT, where two trauma surgeons agree to have a baby together because they both want children and the window of time for the woman may be short due to health issues while the man’s mother wants grandchildren and has advanced cancer. Neither want to marry or date due to recent relationship trauma.
Quite enjoyed Lyra Selene’s romantic fantasy A FEATHER SO BLACK, but wished the pacing had been signaled better. This is a mix of fey world and a changeling and twelve dancing princesses, and many other fairy tale elements. I’ll definitely read the sequel, due out in January.
Enjoyed Kate Stewart’s new holiday novella THE SLEIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS about a couple whose marriage has gone a little stale and whose children have gone off the rails. This made me laugh out loud and the situation felt utterly relatable, even though I don’t have children of my own.
The B/B+ list is:
Erin Langston THE FINEST PRINT didn’t quite have the same zing for me as FOREVER YOUR ROGUE but I did enjoy the print shop setting and historical elements.
H.G. Parry’s characters come alive out of books fantasy, THE UNLIKELY ESCAPE OF URIAH HEEP. This was her first book and a little clunky but a great relationship between two brothers. Lots of Dickens characters!
The 4th book in Devon Monk’s Allie Beckstrom Series, MAGIC ON THE STORM, which was quite entertaining.
Jennifer Whiteford’s MAKE ME A MIXTAPE about a former punk rocker who has been working at her aunt’s coffee shop for 10 years when a former fan helps jolt her out of her rut.
Leonie Mack’s MY CHRISTMAS NUMBER ONE about a pop star whose label forces her to do a song with a Colombian music star who at first seems a superficial lady’s man but turns out far more appealing.
Katie Holt’s NOT IN MY BOOK has been getting strong reviews. Here a romance writer in an MFA writing program who has obnoxious friction with a literary writer so their instructor/mentor makes them write a novel together. I’ve been in way too many writing workshops not to be completely fussed about how this could have been done better.
Sorry — this got cut from my earlier post.
I also wanted to let this community know about A NEW ROMANCE NOVEL BOOKSTORE in Cambridge, Massachusetts – LOVE STRUCK BOOKS. It’s a couple of blocks away from Harvard Square. OMG, IT’S AWESOME! Lovestruck Books
Things I loved about it:
1. Great ambience. Bright, open, clean with open isles and a nice seating area. Lots of wood shelving. It was busy when my daughter and I went, but there’s plenty of room to poke around.
2. Well organized without being too restrictive. Books are organized by broad categories – Romantasy, Contemporary Romance, Historical Romance, etc. I was especially pleased that LGBTQA romances were not segregated. I mentioned it to the staff, and this was a conscious choice that I think works. For instance, all the historicals are together, regardless of who the protagonists are. NICE!
3. Finally, the staff is AMAZING! They are very knowledgeable romance readers who know their stuff and they were SO ENTHUSIASTIC about books! I wanted to take notes while we were talking so that I could get all their recommendations!
In conclusion, if you live nearby, get your butt to Love Struck books asap. If you are looking to order something special, give them a call. Or, sign up for their newsletter — Lovestruck Books 02138
Just to be clear – I don’t know the owner or anyone who works there (though I may force them to be my friends). And I have not researched them at all. Love Struck may be a front for an evil scientist trying to take over the world through romance novels. Regardless, I will be ordering all my book presents from them from now on. LOCAL BOOKSTORES FOR THE WIN!
Happy New Year, Smart Bitches!
ARRGH! Links did not make it. For the newsletter sign on — https://lovestruckbooks.us18.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=0b435401fc51be67c9ef47b25&id=42035a7305
For the store website — https://lovestruckbooks.com/
🙂
I finished up 2024 with some holiday hijinks, comforting rereads, draconic fantasy, and sci-fi with and without romance. No DNFs, yay!
A Kiss at Christmas by Jenny Bayliss
A big thanks to SB Sarah for her mention of this holiday story set in a small town in England. Hannah–in a funk because her teen daughter has opted to spend the holidays in the States–is in a bar pining for her kid when she encounters James. The chemistry between the two is immediate, and–fueled by mulled wine–the usual shenanigans ensue. Little do they expect to meet again within 24 hours at the local police station or to be coerced by James’s crotchety client into reviving a rundown local theatre. The result is a feel-good story in which an ever-expanding group of people of all ages and backgrounds come together to create something wonderful in the runup to Christmas. There are moments when the treacle is ladled on with a heavy hand, but the witty and elegant writing takes this tale well beyond mere sentimentality. I’ll definitely be seeking more by Bayliss.
Cruel Winter with You by Ali Hazelwood
Spoilers off the starboard bow. So much of this very short story could be interpreted in at least two ways. One was mediocre; the other was–in a word–sucky. For instance, the prank filled childhood between Jamie, her best friend, and friend’s younger brother could be seen as a) amusing nostalgia bait orrr b) relentless bullying. Where tf were these kids’ parents? The revelation that, as a teen, Marc had collected a stash of photos of Jamie was a) an awwww moment, or b) stalkerish af. I’m not particularly sensitive to this kind of stuff, but this 73 page opus should have had it’s own color guard twirling gigantic red banners. The final declaration fit the rest of the narrative, steeped as it was in dubious consent. So this one gets all the nopes from me.
Only a Promise by Mary Balogh
The fifth Survivor’s Club novel picks up some of the themes of the earlier novels. What it does not focus on is the group dynamic between the Survivors, though many of them do make appearances. Instead, Ralph Stockwood’s story focuses most strongly on the evolving relationship between Ralph and Chloe, his bride of convenience. Though I enjoyed this entry in the series, the main couple did not move me quite as much as the others and I missed the back and forth between the Survivors. This response is purely a matter of personal taste; I would not hesitate to recommend this to any lover of Regency romance.
Only a Kiss by Mary Balogh
This is the last book in this series I plan to reread during this cycle. I am not a completist. I enjoyed Imogen’s story, but, again, there’s not enough of the Survivor group. Percy has an interesting personal growth arc, and the mystery subplot is interesting as well. I did really like the ending to this one though. At this point, I can’t tell if the plot twists were quite as predictable as they seemed or if the seeming predictability was more familiarity due to this being a reread. Next reread will be even more truncated, I predict.
Scales and Sensibility by Stephanie Burgis
This first book in the Regency Dragons series is a charming example of alternative history spawned, as so many are, by Britain’s Regency era. The tale is full of ”alarums and excursions” and one adorable blue-green pet dragon. Elinor is the orphaned poor relation of a passel of nasty aristos, and she meets Benedict on the road after being driven out of her only home, taking her cousin’s abused pet dragon with her. Magic happens, as does instalove, and the story proceeds in fine fairy tale fashion. If I have one caveat, it is with the lack of complex characterization. The writing is good. the humor is broad, the characters are believable within the story, but, as with most fairy tales, there’s not a lot of subtlety. I look forward to reading the next in the series.
Claws and Contrivances by Stephanie Burgis
I really liked the second book in the Regency Dragons series much better than the first. The good guy to bad guy ratio was much better. Also the dragon count was much expanded. Rose is the second sister sent off to poor relationhood, but her fam of refuge is artsy and rowdy and loving. Cornelius Aubrey is a young brilliant scholar visiting Rose’s uncle. He finds himself drawn into a fake betrothal as well as multiple dragon-centered shenanigans. The humor is character (rather than slime) based, and family is what makes this book soar. This one’s destined for the Comfort Read file.
Accidental Goddess by Linnea Sinclair
I get something new from this book everytime I read it. The story is an excellent blend of romance and science fiction embellished with intriguing fantasy elements. In the past, I’ve thought of AG as slightly flawed, but as of this reading I can no longer justify that belief, To be honest, I think I derived my bad attitude from the centrality of the romance and my own residual snobbery. Yes, IATA. This time I found myself marveling at how original and thought provoking this story actually was. Compared to some more recent SF-Romance, this book kicks asp. Basically, Gillie wakes up 342+ years in the future and discovers that she has been deified over the past centuries. She regains consciousness on a space station where she meets and connects with Admiral Rynan “Mack” Mackarian, and must navigate the complications of unwanted goddesshood without devastating the faithful. I really can’t think of another book quite like it, and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys space opera and hasn’t read it.
Double Star by Robert Heinlein
I picked this up after it was mentioned on one of Jo Walton’s book lists in a Reactor article. IIRC, she refers to The Man in the Iron Mask in her description, but The Prisoner of Zenda is a closer match plotwise. Originally written in the 50s, it is Heinlein’s first Hugo winner. Still an entertaining and thought-provoking read, it is also a fascinating cultural and political artifact. It’s biggest drawback is that the only female character is the only female character. She is a secretary but no more secondary than her male colleagues. She may end up married to the main character, but it’s definitely NOT a romance. I believe Walton’s list was for books to read in troubled times, so the book’s tone is–not surprisingly–optimistic. At any rate, it does cast an interesting light on current politics despite its mid-twentieth century origins.
The Rugelach Road Trip by Jessica Topper
The Matzo Ballers Hanukkah Romance series launched last December with a pair of holiday romances by Topper and Amanda Usen. The stories focus on a group of friends who’ve organized a gala annual holiday cruise around Manhattan to celebrate Hanukkah. This year’s offering by Topper stars rock musician Avi and artist Leah on a wild three day road trip after Ari is left behind at a rest stop by his band’s tour bus. The end goal is the lavish annual Matzo Ballers cruise from Manhattan, but getting there involves winter storms, multiple detours, sentimental side trips, and lashings of Jewish-American food and culture. This book has the feel of an intense slow burn, closed door romance despite the truncated time line. There are also warm hearted encounters with new friends and found family, something Topper does very well. All in all, a delightful celebration of holiday spirit.
@C: your point five made me laugh! (But how many times did they smirk?)
@C and @Kareni: overuse of a word drives me nuts—very few things will take me out of a book faster than the feeling that I’m just waiting for the next incidence of a constantly repeated word. Recently, Cait Nary’s LUCKY BOUNCE had me pulling my hair out with its overuse of “Whatever”…it seemed to be uttered (muttered? lol) at least once per page. Hello, Editor, wherefore art thou?
I have been reading a lot of old time classics this year. One of my top favorites is P. G. Wodehouse with his laugh out aloud humor.
I DNF’d an AJ Sherwood book that used “truly” 40x and “this man” 53x.
As usual the best things I read were usual suspects – the past couple weeks it would be KJ Charles, Lois Mc Master Bujold, and Mick Herron, as I am going back over all of their backlists. Again.
But good new reads also!
I was enormously pleased by EH Lupton’s OLD TIME RELIGION which miraculously met my super high expectations. It’s the second of a series that should definitely be read, and in order. I had it on hold for a long time, which often makes me feel like the book has to do more to be worth it, and this did. It’s queer paranormal historical romance, which is very much my jam. Although the 60s as a historical setting makes me feel very old, I have also had great luck with it. It’s not a long book, unfortunately, because I would hang out in this universe indefinitely, but I can’t really complain about the brevity because it felt like a complete installment. Delightful.
Also, my hold on Pulley’s THE HALF LIFE OF VALERIE K finally came in and while it was one of the most fun reading experiences I had this year, it was in part because it is utterly bonkers in some not excellent ways. I can wholeheartedly recommend it if you are a huge Solzhenitsyn fan, who really wants the problematic m/m fanfic version of CANCER WARD or THE FIRST CIRCLE with no on page sex. Possibly a small target demographic but I am here for it. However, in addition to wanting a cozified grim gulag love story, you have to be able to accept as protagonists a kgb agent and a colleague of Mengele. I am not kidding. There’s a lot of state sanctioned murder and human radiation experiments. I was so incredulous that I found it an absolute page turner, like I was just so fascinated to see how on earth the author could possibly pull this off. I am not sure she did, even with the aid of an impossibly adorable plot moppet octopus. A plotmoctopus? Oh, and women exist in this book solely to be fridged, which I am inured to but if you understandably find that triggering do avoid this one. Hell of a ride tho.
Stephanie Gayle has a m/m detective trilogy I just tore through, the titles are all IDYLL something. It reminds me a lot of Robert B Parker’s Jesse Stone books. Not my favorite but definitely satisfying enough. The 90s as historical fiction feels so absurd to me I don’t even feel old about it, just amused. There’s not as much romance as I would like, but you know that going in so fair enough.
Also good but not great was SORCERY AND SMALL MAGICS by Maiga Doocy. One of the better enemy to lover stories I have come across. It’s not my trope because the enmity is either petty or justified, and either of those are hard for me to come back from. This is the immature type, but intentionally so, as it really highlights how much they have to grow to be ready for any sort of relationship. It’s too YA for my preference but queer magical birding schools are the proven exception to that rule. And this is at a university, which is I guess more NA, which is marginally better. Really, I was very happy with the book right up until the end. There is no kind of ending whatsoever. I really wanted some sort of closure even if temporary, but I will definitely be eagerly awaiting the sequel even if I am a little bitter about it right now.
I was a bit disappointed by the sequel to Therin’s LIAR CITY, although I still enjoyed TWISTED SHADOWS. The first is a verrrry slow burn, as noted above, and this felt both too fast, with an insta-devotion that didn’t make much sense, and simultaneously too dragged out, with nothing ever progressing. Still pleasant, just not as good as the first, which felt fresher and more unexpected.
I devoured KATE CLAYBORN’s CHANCE OF A LIFETIME series (BEGINNER’S LUCK, LUCK OF THE DRAW, BEST OF LUCK and the adjacent novella MISSING CHRISTMAS).M/F contemporary. They are divine. Soulful, sexy and highly recommended.
Also most of LISA KLEYPAS’s WALLFLOWERS stories: SECRETS OF A SUMMER NIGHT, IT HAPPENED ONE AUTUMN (Westcliff!) and THE DEVIL IN WINTER (St Vincent’s story). Am just about to start the final book in the series, SCANDAL IN SPRING. They’re early 2000’s and tend to be a bit florid in parts but she’s reliably good and I continue to enjoy working my way through her catalogue.
Currently in the middle of LUCY SCORE’s THE CHRISTMAS FIX and it’s like being hit over the head but in her usual more-ish and very fun way…
See you all in 2025. Happy reading.
I’m still in sort of a book slump, but did manage to finish a few things. Unusually for me, one was non-fiction, NEVER SAW ME COMING. I’ll just quote a sentence from the blurb “Tanya Smith shares the remarkable story of how she went from a computer-savvy middle class Black girl from Minneapolis to what the FBI dubbed “one of the single biggest threats to the entire United States banking system.” This started out like a fun heist movie. But it turned sad even before she gets caught and convicted of bank fraud; all the millions she stole didn’t really bring her happiness. But the ending is upbeat, and her life story is pretty remarkable.
I’ve been dipping into IF I MUST DIE, a collection of poems and essays by Refaat Alareer, a Palestinian write who was killed in an airstrike in Gaza last year.
I also read a few Christmas historicals. The best was CHRISTMAS BELLES by Susan Carroll. Carroll also wrote BRIGHTON ROAD which I recall was either reviewed or favorably mentioned by someone here. Anyway, CHRISTMAS BELLES is about 4 sisters who are left impoverished after their father dies. Their new guardian is a naval caption who comes to visit them for the holidays, and he’s the grouchy, serious type who never celebrates Christmas. Naturally the sister he falls in love with is the sunshiny one, so you can imagine how the story goes from there, and it is totally delightful. Very reminiscent of Carla Kelly’s Royal Navy romances.
I’m currently dragging myself out of a book slump with some manga…Shou Harusono’s Candy compikation art book was finally given an English-language release late last month, and I managed to get a copy. My love of Sasaki and Miyano was rewarded with some beautiful artwork and some revealing interviews (it did my heart good to learn that Sasaki is basically demisexual too, though again the series never uses that term for him or Miyano). The only problem is that the tiny font used for the author’s notes at the end of each volume appears frequently throughout (the Japanese edition has it too, but I’d hoped the translation wouldn’t). I had to use a magnifying glass to read, which was frustrating. Anxiously awaiting volume 10 of Sasamiya next month…rumor has it that volume 11 is the finale, but no one is sure if Harusono’s college series to follow will be canon or not. (After Natsuki Kizu’s Given ended with a whimper, I don’t know if I can take more BL disappointment.)
It’s been a good year for rock books about bands of brothers..after Bob Stanley’s Bee Gees epic hit the top of my list earlier this year, Now You’re One of Us: The Story of Redd Kross has given it a run for its money. Jeff and Steven McDonald tell their own story (with help from Dan Epstein), and it’s so riveting that I finished it in one sitting. For that matter, Jim and William Reid of the Jesus and Mary Chain produced the snarkily entertaining memoir Never Understood (I vow to listen to the audiobook when I can devote proper attention to the Scottish accents).
I haven’t had tons of luck with romances this year. The last one to resonate with me was Rachel Lynn Solomon’s Past Present Future, the sequel to her Today Tonight Tomorrow. I haven’t read TTT, but it apparently is an enemies-to-lovers with a heavy hit of whirlwind romance. This one deals with the couple’s long-distance romance in college…from what I can tell fans thought this one was a downer in comparison, but I found its honest treatment of mental health and LDR issues refreshing in a way that made the high points that much sweeter and sexier. We’ll see if TTT changes my mind…
LETTERS TO HALF MOON STREET by Sarah Wallace, MEDDLE & MEND #1: Delightful! Frothy. Gavin’s naivety stretches credulity. Charles is in love with him because? Who knows. Who cares. They’re clearly destined for each other because book logic. And the side characters are *chef’s kiss*. The sister? Brilliant and awesome. The older brother? Wretched. Self-important. Hypocritical. The younger brother? Hilariously college-aged and self-absorbed. Did I mention this is set in an alterative reality where queerness just is? And also that there is magic? The only thing that would make this book better is if the story were told entirely through letters. Except – oh wait. Wait a moment. Yes. This is, in fact, an epistolary novel. Perfection.
ONE GOOD TURN by Sarah Wallace, MEDDLE & MEND #2: What is this? Where is my light and frothy romance #2? Where are the letters going back and forth? The careless upper class protection from want? The MC here is – checks notes – an orphan living in poverty? I’m a few chapters in and just not feeling the completely different vibe from book 1.
THE WILD WOLF’S REJECTED MATE by Cate C. Wells, FIVE PACKS #5: I was excited to read this book, but I have to say that this particular story just hit me differently than the previous 4 books in the series did. Fated mates is a tricky trope to pull off, particularly when cupid’s arrow aims squarely at the crotch. Some combination of Annie’s intense trauma-induced anxiety about everything, including biologically compelled sex with a total stranger, and the general anxiety I am feeling right now about consent and reproductive choice made reading this book uncomfortable. The bright spot in this novel is definitely Justus, who has more emotional intelligence than all the other MMCs in this series combined. I love the way Justus uses his strength to raise people up. He’s the alpha in practice, but refuses to take up the title because he wants pack members to continue to question his ideas. He sees value in collaboration and feels no need for adulation. I wish that all our political and business leaders could be equally community-minded.
@Big K
Thank you for the review of Love Struck! I’d seen it on Instagram, but living in Boston, working in Cambridge, I groaned at the prospect of going to Harvard Square haha. Definitely planning a visit in the new year!
I’ve had a strange reading year. I’ve read a bunch of looooong fantasy series and DNFed a ton of books. Hoping for a more consistent 2025.
I decided to finish the year with some comfort reads so first up it’s Howl’s Moving Castle, classic fantasy by Diana Wynne-Jones, and then I’ll probably move on to Georgette Heyer or Loretta Chase, old favorites.
Birthdaaaaay incoming.
Yeah, I’m 46. Still haven’t been mauled by a goldfish.
Anyhoo. I took a page out of my daughter’s book (hehehehe, she was reading this series before I was) and cracked Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett. I liked the journaling aspect of it, and I’m always a sucker for footnotes. I also liked the interplay between Emily and the faeries she interacted with (including a certain faerie king who thinks he’s slick, and doesn’t know she figured out his deal almost as soon as they met). I also liked the fact that just because Emily was highly competent didn’t mean that she couldn’t be out of her depth, and the fact that she was cognizant of that fact that there were different ways to be intelligent and resourceful, and she could learn from others. I also liked snarky Wendell, and he made one comment about cats that might be the truest thing anyone has ever said. Then I soldiered straight on into Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands. This one had a bit more of a court intrigue bent, since they were looking for the backdoor of a kingdom. I also liked the addition of what is actually quite a mean little faerie cat, and by that I mean that she mostly acts like a cat. I also enjoyed the interplay between Emily and one of her contemporaries. It’s steeped in mutual respect, but also at times mutual dislike and frustration, and both have to grapple with the fact that just because the other might have a good point doesn’t mean they have to like (academics, amiright?). Also, more footnotes. Which brings us to now, in which I am taking a quick break from Emily to bust out a library copy of Fang Fiction by Katie Stayman-London. It involves woman that finds herself in the world of her favorite vampire book series, and has to survive accordingly. The villain of the series, who she has to work with, is, of course, insanely hot, while also being snarky and maybe not a villain. It’s funny and clever, and having a ball with all of the vampire tropes. TW: the heroine is a survivor of sexual assault, and is still very much processing a lot of trauma, and it colors a lot of her interactions, including the bff she ghosted after the assault because she couldn’t stand being in their or apartment or dealing with people. I haven’t come across anything graphic, but I also like people to be kind to their brains.
So, until next time as I trek home, take care of you as we take another trip around the sun.
@Morgan, it’s totally worth it, given you can just hop on the Red Line. There are also a lot more food options in the Square than there were in the old days – donuts, cannolis, deli – in the 90’s there was just an UNO’s Pizza, and that’s it! Hope you have a nice outing.
DEVOTION’S COVENANT was the most recent book set in Abigail Kelly’s supernatural North America. The elves rule the west coast, and Petra Zaskodna is priestess of Glory, goddess of light, in San Francisco. The book opens with her meeting Silas, a demon, and contracting with him to kill a temple official. I love an adversaries to lovers plot, and the priestess of light and a demon of shadows assassin are absolutely that. It grabbed me from the beginning, and I really recommend it, as well as the first book, CONSORT’S GLORY, about a witch healer and the elvan leader.
I didn’t read many Christmas novellas this year, but did like BED ME DUKE by Felicity Niven. A duke has lessons in pleasing women from a lovely and inappropriate teacher – *surprise!!* they work it out. I’m also reading Catherine Walsh’s HOLIDAY ROMANCE, about two people from Ireland who meet on the plane home from Chicago every year. It’s fun so far.
Finished THE WOMAN IN BLACK by Susan Hill which was good and spooky but stumbled at the end.
Dipped back into EPIGRAMS FROM THE GREEK ANTHOLOGY and TRANSGENDER HISTORY.
Failed to read any holiday romance as I’d planned, so now squeezing in THE MISTLETOE TRAP by Eve Pendle,a novella in TWELVE LORDS FOR CHRISTMAS.
@Pam G:
Jenny Bayliss has only written Christmas books, so you’ll have plenty to discover next time.
What Comes from Attending the Commoner’s Ball by Elisabeth Aimee Brown on KU (btw KU has a 3-month deal going on right now!): Ahh. It was nice? While reading it, I wanted to continue reading but once done, I was kinda like hmm, wish the worldbuilding had slightly more depth to it. I enjoyed the main female character the most—she had grit, was determined and wouldn’t let things get her down. Though I DID wonder at how quickly she was able to adapt to changes in her life (for the worse) which were brought about by the shenanigans of other characters. She lost her job because of the antics of one of the characters, and she was just able to pick herself up and go about looking for a new job the next day without too much railing/protesting/anger at the person who was responsible. Felt weak to me but maybe that’s just me.
Three Holidays and a Wedding: I found this one by using STBT’s “book search” feature. I honestly didn’t know how much I needed to read this! It is perfect—characters who feel real, feelings that feel real, a quaint snowy town which is probably not real but which is perfectly what a holiday read needs, and a set of kind, diverse characters who I didn’t know I needed to read about. I would gladly re-read this some other holiday season. Would highly recommend.
The Holiday Cottage: Sarah Morgan’s holiday installment. Not bad, neither wowzers, but still a Sarah Morgan so worth a read. Morgan always manages to capture the emotional notes of a complex situation really well.
A Marriage of Undead Convenience: I would have enjoyed this much more if it had been a longer length story. It was a little too thin for me. The characters were well drawn but the story was a little rushed and abrupt.
Christmas Eve Proposal (Carla Kelly): Kelly continues to write some of my favorite historial regencies. Perhaps even more than Mary Balogh. I like the non-ton slice-of-life stories she writes.
I also re read Devil’s Bride after a no of years and still enjoyed it. Don’t think I ever enjoyed the rest of the series though.
@book_reader_ea01sj71r4: I am reading LETTERS TO HALF MOON STREET after seeing your recommendation above and very much enjoying it. Thank you!!
@kkw – OK, I checked out Dionysus in Wisconsin by E.H. Lupton from Hoopla, because, wow does that sound like my catnip.
And then I laughed out loud at your review of THE HALF LIFE OF VALERIE K – definitely NOT my catnip, but fun to read about your experience.
@Jill Q
I loved The Cardturner so much! Louis Sachar’s characters are always so well drawn. Lol I didn’t realize he was trying to get the reader to retain the card rules xD None of it stuck for me either
I just finished THE WITCH KING over the weekend and just can’t stop thinking about it. The cultures and all different types of magic users were just so ding dang interesting. It’s been a while since I’ve read a fantasy that had in depth worldbuilding, this was really fun one. I read it quite slowly (actually started it after T-day) but that pace turned out to be just right.
Somehow I thought Queen Demon was coming out in February – I guess since Witch King came out early in the year….its release date is October 2025 :’)
Started THE SECRET HISTORY. I’ve been dodging spoilers for this book for 15+ years. It’s one of the oldest of the oldies on my TBR x) The writing is obviously amazing and beyond excellent, it’s famous for a reason but…I don’t mean to be reductive, but I kinda feel like I’m reading a remixed Great Expectations, which was my main takeaway from THE GOLDFINCH.
@Jill Q.: I stayed up way too late last night finishing THE CARDTURNER by Louis Sachar. I enjoyed it very much, so thank you!