Greetings, fellow readers!
How is the month of February treating you? This is a very busy month for our family with basketball, cheer, birthdays, and all the regular work and life stuff. I would venture to guess that we are not alone in that!
When it comes to reading during busy seasons, the name of the game for me is audiobooks. A full 50% of my reading so far this month has been on audio, which is definitely more than usual. While I like being able to continue listening to great stories while I’m getting stuff done, it also makes me more grateful for the moments when I’m able to sit down and read with my eyeballs. It’s not like this is news or anything, but sitting down with a good book is so relaxing!
This month my books seem to be broken down into three general categories: fantasy romance, romantic comedies, and historical romance. There are a couple of outliers, but about 80% of the books I’ve been reading fit into those three buckets. Regardless of genre, all the books I’m sharing today are ones that I’m excited about — either because I enjoyed them or because I think I will soon.
Without further ado, let’s talk about some books!
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Just Finished:
This book is *chef’s kiss*. It’s a re-read for me because I loved it so much the first time I read it a few years ago and when I recently saw someone post about it on Instagram I remembered how great it was and had to listen again. This is a heart-achingly beautiful love story about broken people and found family. It centers around Charlie Lionheart, a lion tamer with a traveling circus, and Ella Beckley, a young woman with a big heart and a troubled past. I don’t want to give away too much with spoilers, so just believe me when I say you need this book in your life.
This romantic comedy about uber-famous singer Rae Rose who gets stranded in the small town of Rome, KY had me laughing out loud. She finds herself staying in the guest bedroom of a grumpy pie shop owner whom she does not want to find as attractive as she does. He is annoyed by her sunshiny personality and the way her presence messes with his routine and invites gossip from nosy townsfolk. I think the thing I liked the most about it is Noah’s internal dialogue as he interacts with Rae and everyone else. He’s so sarcastic and self-deprecating. I loved it!
In Progress:
I know, I know, another WWII novel. But this WWII novel is set in Denmark and details the resistance of the Danish citizens, a topic I’ve never read about before. It also has a super smart female lead who is a physicist, so that’s cool, and the male lead is a gentle giant who doesn’t think he’s good enough for her. I’m enjoying watching them both grow as people even as they are shifting closer to each other in the story. This one came highly recommended by my mom and so far it’s living up to expectations!
Nancy Mehl never ceases to surprise me with her mystery/suspense novels. I am a mere 13% into this audiobook and I have already been completely sucked in by the story and the surprises that have already popped up. This tale of an FBI agent with a strange connection to a serial killer has me looking for chores to do so I can keep listening.
Up Next:
I can’t wait to start reading this romantic comedy about a Hollywood screenwriter who finally has a chance to take revenge on an old schoolmate when she is cast as a lead in his show. This book releases in April, so I was pretty excited to get an early copy from NetGalley. I’ll probably post a full review of this one next month.
I already had this book on my list after hearing an interview with the author, so I was all kinds of excited when my book club picked it to read together! I immediately ordered a copy, of course, and will start reading this historical novel about a midwife who is determined to find the truth about a murder.
Don’t mind me, I’m just over here binging Annah Conwell’s backlist. The third in the Sweet Peach series, this is a friends-to-more sweet rom-com and one that I’m excited for since you see hints of it in the previous books. Bennett has been in love with his best friend Sophie for years, and she’s somehow remained oblivious, until she needs a fake date for an event and realizes there could be more there than she thought. Annah Conwell always makes me laugh with her fun characters.
For more great book talk and recommendations, check Anne Bogel’s monthly quick lit post — and don’t forget to check out the comments to see what other bookish folks are reading!