Hello Readers! I haven’t been able to combine my wrap-up and haul since May of last year, but I finally read more than I added to my shelves. 😉 I don’t know if it was just me, but it felt like January had a few extra weeks. But I wasn’t complaining. Due to the resurgence of Covid here in Texas, we spent most of the month cuddled up at home. And it was glorious after the past two busy holiday months. I was able to read to my heart’s content. I especially fell hard for some swoon-y romances, discovering many new-to-me authors, as well!

If you look back at My January TBR, you’ll see I managed to read all eight books on my list plus two more, bringing my total to 10 books read or 3,334 pages. Most of them were ARCs (advanced reader copies), and it’s nice to be ahead of schedule.

Let’s see what I managed to read and add to my shelves!

Be sure to check out The Monthly Wrap-Up Round-Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction!

(Link to synopsis on Goodreads through the book title.)

January Wrap-Up

I finally picked up Ashley Elston’s 10 Blind Dates at the start of the month, my first book by the author. I loved that this one was set from Christmas to New Year’s but was more about the dates than the holidays. With each date I wondered how Elston could top the previous one and still keep them interesting, but she easily met my expectations. This one was fun and sweet and I was happy to find out there’s a follow-up book, 10 Truths and a Dare, set in the same world with the wonderful Messina family.

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐

When I was invited to read the Amazon Original short story The Wedding Setup by Sonali Dev, I quickly accepted. I’d wanted to try the author for awhile and it seemed like a great way to be introduced. But I had no idea how much I would adore this much-too-short story. I’m very eager to read more by her soon!

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My Review
Available January 11, 2022

I was happy to have finally picked up This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens, which had been on my TBR for a few years. My first book by the author, this romance set around New Years was pretty darn perfect to me. I loved the When Harry Met Sally aspect of it. Refreshing and uplifting!

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I was super impressed with Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves by Meg Long, an action-packed YA fantasy debut. It’s a fascinating world Long has created and I fully expect it to become a series!

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐
My Review
Available January 11, 2022

Diane Chamberlain’s The Last House on the Street is the latest historical fiction novel by the prolific author. It was more of a mystery than the previous books I’d read by her, and I was surprised by how much I liked the darker tone. Chamberlain always teaches me a new facet about history, and I enjoyed this one about the 1960s civil rights movement.

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐
My Review
Available January 11, 2022

One of my more recent ARC additions, despite having plenty to read the first few months of the year, was Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg. I couldn’t resist the unique plot of this debut about a baker who falls for the paleontologist who comes to unearth bones in her grandparent’s backyard.

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐
My Review
Available January 1, 2022

I’d never read a book by prolific romance author Elle Kennedy, so I was anxious to pick up her latest one, Good Girl Complex. In the beginning I wasn’t sure about this rich vs. poor romance, but it quickly won me over! Addictive, swoon-y, sexy, and fun!

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐.50
My Review
Available February 1, 2022

I had a hard time reviewing Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson. It’s wonderfully written, with enigmatic characters, but I struggled to connect with them. I seem to be in the minority on this one, though, so I hope others will pick up this literary debut that already has plans to be adapted!

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐
My Review
Available February 1, 2022

After enjoying Camilla Isley’s Fool Me Twice at Christmas and A Christmas Caroline in December, I requested to read her next holiday story, Home for Christmas and was thrilled when I received the invite! I loved the premise of this one—an Airbnb-type cabin is double booked for the holidays forcing two families to make the best of it. This one isn’t too heavy on Christmas, so it’s good to read any time of the year!

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐.75
Review to come!
Available February 22, 2022

When I saw From Lukov With Love available on Kindle Unlimited, it felt like the perfect time to finally read this romance that had been sitting on my TBR for so long. Not to mention the fact that it’s about a pairs ice skating team and the Winter Olympics are upon us. I loved this one so much! Once again I was wondering what took me so long to finally pick it up. It’s the ultimate slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers sports romance! And I’ve added another new author to love.

My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐.50

January Book Haul

My haul was finally under control in January. I did add a few new books, including a new ARC I’m quite excited about.

My ARC

I was very excited when the newest book by Alexis Schaitkin, Elsewhere from Celadon Books, showed up on my doorstep. I read her last novel, Saint X and thought it was very well-done. I’m very intrigued by this one, as well.

Synopsis:

Richly emotive and darkly captivating, with elements of Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” and the imaginative depth of Margaret Atwood, Elsewhere by Alexis Schaitkin conjures a community in which girls become wives, wives become mothers and some of them, quite simply, disappear.

Vera grows up in a small town, removed and isolated, pressed up against the mountains, cloud-covered and damp year-round. This town, fiercely protective, brutal and unforgiving in its adherence to tradition, faces a singular affliction: some mothers vanish, disappearing into the clouds. It is the exquisite pain and intrinsic beauty of their lives; it sets them apart from people elsewhere and gives them meaning.

Vera, a young girl when her own mother went, is on the cusp of adulthood herself. As her peers begin to marry and become mothers, they speculate about who might be the first to go, each wondering about her own fate. Reveling in their gossip, they witness each other in motherhood, waiting for signs: this one devotes herself to her child too much, this one not enough—that must surely draw the affliction’s gaze. When motherhood comes for Vera, she is faced with the question: will she be able to stay and mother her beloved child, or will she disappear?

Provocative and hypnotic, Alexis Schaitkin’s Elsewhere is at once a spellbinding revelation and a rumination on the mysterious task of motherhood and all the ways in which a woman can lose herself to it; the self-monitoring and judgment, the doubts and unknowns, and the legacy she leaves behind.

Expected June 28, 2022

My Paperbackswap book

• Pretty in Pink by H. B. Gilmour – A child of the 80s and 90s, I grew up obsessed with John Hughes’ films and Molly Ringwald, especially since we all shared the same birthday, too. I remember finding this paperback in a used book store and reading it, surprised that it had a different ending than the film. And then surprised to learn that it was actually how the film was intended to end, but fans were so upset, they re-filmed the ending! (And there’s your 1980s trivia for the day!) I’ve had this book on my wishlist for years, and I was thrilled when it finally came up! It even looks worn and loved as my copy did. Apparently it’s a hard book to come by and sells for a nice amount, which makes me feel even luckier to have landed a copy.

My Purchases

• Tigers, Not Daughters by Samantha Mabry – I’ve read two books by Mabry and enjoyed them. So when a prompt on my Popsugar challenge was for a book with ‘Tiger’ in the title or a tiger on the cover, I immediately thought of this book. I picked up a copy with a Thriftbooks coupon.
• Up All Night: 13 Stories between Sunset and Sunrise by Laura Silverman and various other YA authors – As a self-proclaimed night owl, I’ve been intrigued by this anthology since before it published, so when I saw the ebook on sale, I added it to my books. Not sure when I’ll get to it, but anthologies are always great palate cleansers for me.

Free Books

• The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling – I won this one from a publisher’s giveaway!
• The Ticket (Love Again, #1) by Heather Grace Stewart – This is the third book in the Love Again series I’ve picked up for free over the past few months. I’ve never read a book by Stewart, but I’m intrigued by the unique plots in this series of standalones.

Amazon First Reads

My Amazon First Reads choice this month was Deconstructed by Liz Talley, a romance about a vintage-loving fashion designer! I can see this one fulfilling a Popsugar prompt in the future. 🙂

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How was your reading month? Have you read any of these books? Did you add any of them to your TBR? Let me know in the comments!

Happy Wandering!