Hello Readers! I hope the new year finds you safe and well. And while I’m looking forward to new books and new challenges, I’m still allowing myself to spend a few more days in holiday mode after a busy December. I’m currently spending more time catching up on blogging than on reading, so my January TBR will be a small, low-pressure one.

We’re not even going to take a look back at my December tbr because I didn’t have a great bookish month like I’d hoped. New Year, new goals, right?! Let’s wipe the slate clean and start over. 😃 And whatever I don’t get to this month, I’ll probably push into February. I currently don’t have any ARCs due for February, so yay!

Here’s what I’m hoping to read!

In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren

I’ll be starting the month off finishing up my reread of this holiday romance. I read In a Holidaze in December of 2020 and 2021, and I’d hoped it would be a new tradition, but since I didn’t get to read as much as I wanted last month, I couldn’t get it finished by the new year. I’m happy to spend more time in a holidaze! 😉

Synopsis:

One Christmas wish, two brothers, and a lifetime of hope are on the line for hapless Maelyn Jones in In a Holidaze, the quintessential holiday romantic novel by Christina Lauren, the New York Times bestselling author of The Unhoneymooners..

It’s the most wonderful time of the year…but not for Maelyn Jones. She’s living with her parents, hates her going-nowhere job, and has just made a romantic error of epic proportions.

But perhaps worst of all, this is the last Christmas Mae will be at her favorite place in the world—the snowy Utah cabin where she and her family have spent every holiday since she was born, along with two other beloved families. Mentally melting down as she drives away from the cabin for the final time, Mae throws out what she thinks is a simple plea to the universe: Please. Show me what will make me happy.

The next thing she knows, tires screech and metal collides, everything goes black. But when Mae gasps awake…she’s on an airplane bound for Utah, where she begins the same holiday all over again. With one hilarious disaster after another sending her back to the plane, Mae must figure out how to break free of the strange time loop—and finally get her true love under the mistletoe.

Jam-packed with yuletide cheer, an unforgettable cast of characters, and Christina Lauren’s trademark hijinks, this swoon-worthy romantic read will make you believe in the power of wishes and the magic of the holidays.

Goodreads
My Review

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The Stranded by Sarah Daniels

I’m not sure what precedent it sets for 2023 when I’m already late to read my first ARC of the year, but I’m hoping to read this one next!

Synopsis:

Snowpiercer meets The Hunger Games in a gripping near-future dystopian.
 
Welcome to the Arcadia. 

Once a luxurious cruise ship, it became a refugee camp after being driven from Europe by an apocalyptic war. Now it floats near the coastline of the Federated States – a leftover piece of a fractured USA.

For forty years, residents of the Arcadia have been prohibited from making landfall. It is a world of extreme haves and have nots, gangs and make-shift shelters.

Esther is a loyal citizen, working flat-out to have the rare chance to live a normal life as a medic on dry land. Nik is a rebel, planning something big to liberate the Arcadia once and for all.

When events throw them both together, their lives, and the lives of everyone on the ship, will change forever . . .

Goodreads
Published January 3, 2023

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Swift the Storm, Fierce the Flame by Meg Long

I read and enjoyed Long’s debut Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves set in the same world, so I’m excited to pick this one up!

Synopsis:

A girl hellbent on finding the friend she lost. A planet on the brink of total destruction. Only one way to find answers amidst the chaos: team up with a traitor to stage a revolution, in Meg Long’s Swift the Storm, Fierce the Flame.

After a mission gone awry two years ago, Remy Castell has been desperately searching across worlds to find the friend she failed to save—the friend who changed her life by helping her overcome the brainwashing she was subjected to as a genetically engineered corporate agent.

Since then, she’s been chasing the only lead she has: fellow genopath Kiran Lore, the same secretive ex-squadmate who left her for dead when she compromised that mission. She nearly caught up to him on Tundar before joining the infamous sled race alongside outcast Sena and her wolf companion Iska. Now, all three of them have tracked Kiran back to Maraas, the jungle planet where Remy lost everything. But nothing on Maraas is how it was two years ago. Syndicates and scavvers alike are now trying to overthrow a megalomaniac corpo director, which Remy wants nothing to do with; fighting against corpos is as useless as trying to stay dry in the middle of the giant hellstorm that encircles the planet. But the storm—and the rebellion—are growing stronger by the minute.

When Remy finds Kiran, he doesn’t run away like she expects. Instead, he offers her a deal: help with the revolution and he’ll reunite her with her friend. But can she really trust the boy who betrayed her once before? With the entire planet on the edge of all-out war, Remy will have to decide just how far she’s willing to go to save one girl before the impending storm drowns them all.

Goodreads
Expected January 17, 2023

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Georgie, All Along by Kate Clayborn

I adored Love at First, so I was happy to be approved for Clayborn’s newest novel. I’m hearing great things so far!

Synopsis:

The acclaimed author of Love Lettering weaves a wise and witty new novel that echoes with timely questions about love, career, reconciling with the past, and finding your path while knowing your true worth.

Longtime personal assistant Georgie Mulcahy has made a career out of putting others before herself. When an unexpected upheaval sends her away from her hectic job in L.A. and back to her hometown, Georgie must confront an uncomfortable truth: her own wants and needs have always been a disconcertingly blank page. 

But then Georgie comes across a forgotten artifact—a “friendfic” diary she wrote as a teenager, filled with possibilities she once imagined. To an overwhelmed Georgie, the diary’s simple, small-scale ideas are a lifeline—a guidebook for getting started on a new path. 

Georgie’s plans hit a snag when she comes face to face with an unexpected roommate—Levi Fanning, onetime town troublemaker and current town hermit. But this quiet, grouchy man is more than just his reputation, and he offers to help Georgie with her quest. As the two make their way through her wishlist, Georgie begins to realize that what she truly wants might not be in the pages of her diary after all, but right by her side—if only they can both find a way to let go of the pasts that hold them back. 

Honest and deeply emotional, Georgie, All Along is a smart, tender must-read for everyone who’s ever wondered about the life that got away . . .

Goodreads
Expected January 24, 2023

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Greywaren (Dreamer Trilogy, #3) by Maggie Stiefvater

While I’m sad to arrive at what the author says will be the end of The Raven Cycle universe, I’m anxious to find out what becomes of all the characters I love so much.

Synopsis:

This is the story of the Lynch family. 

Niall and Mór escaped their homeland for a new start, and lost themselves in what they found. 

Declan has grown up as the responsible son, the responsible brother–only to find there is no way for him to keep his family safe.

Ronan has always lived on the edge between dreams and waking… but now that edge is gone, and he is falling. 

Matthew has been the happy child, the brightest beam. But rebellion beckons, because it all feels like an illusion now. 

This world was not made for such a family–a family with the power to make a world and break it. If they cannot save each other or themselves, we are all doomed.

Goodreads

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Hello Stranger by Katherine Center

When I received an invite to read Center’s latest romance in November, I fully intended to read it right away, but couldn’t make it happen. I’m hoping to pick it up this month, even though it doesn’t publish until summer. Center is always a favorite author of mine.

Synopsis:

Sadie Montogmery has had good breaks and bad breaks in her life, but as a struggling artist, all she needs is one lucky break. Things seem to be going her way when she lands one of the coveted finalist spots in a portrait competition. It happens to coincide with a surgery she needs to have. Minor, they say. Less than a week in the hospital they say. Nothing about you will change, they say. Upon recovery, it begins to dawn on Sadie that she can see everything around her, but she can no longer see faces. 

Temporary, they say. Lots of people deal with this, they say. As she struggles to cope―and hang onto her artistic dreams―she finds solace in her fourteen-year-old dog, Peanut. Thankfully, she can still see animal faces. When Peanut gets sick, she rushes him to the emergency vet nearby. That’s when she meets veterinarian Dr. Addison. And she’s pleasantly surprised when he asks her on a date. But she doesn’t want anyone to know about her face blindness. Least of all Joe, her obnoxious neighbor who always wears a bowling jacket and seems to know everyone in the building. He’s always there at the most embarrassing but convenient times, and soon, they develop a sort of friendship. But could it be something more?

As Sadie tries to save her career, confront her haunting past, and handle falling in love with two different guys she realizes that happiness can be found in the places―and people― you least expect.

Goodreads
Expected July 11, 2023

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Have you read any of these books yet? Let me know in the comments!

Happy Wandering!