From historical fiction to rom-coms to YA fantasy, I have seven books to share with you today that run the genre gamut. I’ve really hit my reading stride the last few weeks and have been very happy with the books I’ve picked up. No reading slumps here! I even read a book that inspired a new post with a list of no-spice Scottish romances, which was a fun rabbit hole to fall down.
So without further ado, let get to the list!
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Just Finished:
A marriage of convenience hockey romance by my girl Jenny Proctor? Um, yes please! When Sarah’s brother hatches a plan for her to marry one of his teammates so that she can stay in the U.S., she’s initially upset—especially when she finds out he already asked Carter Williamson without even talking to her! Carter isn’t keen on the idea at first either, but not because he isn’t interested in Sarah. They totally have chemistry, and after a lot of reflection he agrees. This story was a delight from start to finish as they navigate a fake relationship that feels more and more real as they get to know each other better.
So far, I’ve never met a Jennifer Lynn Barnes book I didn’t like, so I decided to give her teenage werewolf series a try even though it’s pretty different from her other work. I’m glad I trusted her! I didn’t love it as much as The Inheritance Games world, but it was still a solid read about a human girl who was rescued by an alpha werewolf and raised in his pack. She’s what you’d call a strong personality and likes to challenge pretty much everything, so when she discovers a young, recently turned werewolf named Chase being held in the alpha’s basement, she can’t help diving into solving the mystery of how he got there and why they have an unexpected connection to each other. What I liked about this book is that it had all the elements about werewolves that interest me (shifting, pack dynamics, alphas, etc) but without the spicy fated-mate storyline that so many other shifter stories tend to emphasize. The bondings that happen are sometimes romantic, but often it’s more like a very strong friendship or forged family, and I liked that aspect. I’ll definitely be picking up the next book in the series at some point.
Caroline: Little House, Revisited
This is Little House on the Prairie but told from the perspective of Ma Ingalls. I really liked revisiting a childhood favorite from a different angle, seeing all the familiar events unfold through the eyes of an adult woman. It’s historical fiction, so what Caroline thought and felt during those events is speculation, but I thought the author did a great job portraying her in a way that felt totally believable and relatable. I also recently enjoyed her other book, Marmee, that follows the mother from Little Women in a similar way.
In Progress:
I love me some Jaime Jo Wright! In her newest release, Triss goes to work in the bookshop of an old estate and quickly learns that the house has a haunted history, including rumors of a 100th door that supposedly lets spirits in from the other side. To her dismay, her ghost hunter brother turns up only days after she begins work, threatening to drag her back into the ‘family business’ of paranormal investigation, a world she’s worked hard to leave behind. In a second timeline in 1888, Minnie has just moved the estate with her father, who immediately begins showing some distressing symptoms that point to his being visited by a malevolent ghost who is rumored to haunt the mansion—symptoms that eerily mirror the ones Triss’s brother is experiencing in the present day. Mysteries abound and I can’t wait to see how this story is going to resolve!
When her father inherits a crumbling abbey, Edith Worms and the rest of the family go with him to settle things and meet her cousins with every intention of returning home quickly to the parish where her father serves as rector. After all, Edith is quite happy serving alongside him and writing sensational stories under a pseudonym. But she quickly begins to realize that things are not as they seem at Wormwood Abbey. I’ve seen this marketed as a clean YA fantasy and so far I’m really enjoying it. Edith’s witty, insightful observations put me in mind of a younger Emma M. Lion, and I think I’ll pass this book on to my 13-year-old when I’m done.
Up Next:
The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Volume 3
I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m just as addicted to Emma as everyone else seems to be. I love all the quirky character and the witty, brutally honest entries into her journal chronicling a life that is like everyone else’s — simultaneously filled with the mundane and the extraordinary. I’ll be starting the third volume this week!
Becca Kinzer is a favorite of mine for her hilarious heartfelt romantic comedies, and I’m excited to start listening to her newest book when it releases next week! I’ll grab it through my Spotify Premium bliss out to what I fully expect to be a funny, charming love story. Just read this description and tell me it doesn’t sound so fun:
“McKenna Boston is feeling stuck. She’s spent years growing her photography skills only for her career to hit a wall. She’s ready to move on, and she will, just as soon as she helps her sister’s boyfriend stage the perfect proposal. But when her best laid plans go awry and a handsome stranger accidentally ends up with the heirloom ring, McKenna hops on a flight to retrieve it. Piece of cake, right?
Nate Lambert was hoping to enjoy a relaxing summer before starting his new job as a literature professor, but he arrives in Tennessee to discover his mom’s bed and breakfast is struggling and there’s a long list of repairs to be tackled. The last thing he needs is a gorgeous, determined photographer searching for a ring he doesn’t have since the airline lost his luggage somewhere on his route from Nebraska.
With the ring nowhere to be found, all McKenna can do is wait and use the time to build her portfolio and plan her next career move. But she also can’t help getting swept up in Nate’s bed and breakfast renovations and in planning a community concert with the townsfolk. As both await news of Nate’s suitcase, it begins to seem their serendipitous meeting, and the proposal gone wrong, could actually be everything going right . . . and that this may be their chance at a love neither could have pictured.”
For more great books to check out, head over to Modern Mrs. Darcy’s monthly quick lit roundup.
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