The Books I Read in November

With the 13 books I read this month I only have 5 more to go to meet my yearly reading goal-- easy peasy! I typically don't read any Christmas themed books until after Thanksgiving but the last couple of years I have not been able to read quite a few of the books I had hoped to because I waited too long and they were all snapped up at our library before I got there.  So I added in some holiday books along with some of my standard reading and had a great time reading this month.  At one point I had 4 different books going!  

1. For Batter or Worse by Jenn McKinlay (Cupcake Bakery Mystery Book #13)-- When Mel is checking out the venue for her wedding reception she finds her old bakery assistant Oz standing over the dead body of his boss who has been murdered.  Mel knows that Oz is innocent and is determined to clear his name before she walks down aisle.  I've read this entire series in the last year and the books are so fun and such quick reads. 

2. The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth-- I enjoyed this story a lot! It was so cute and made me laugh but it also sad and made me cry.  It was like a wonderful rom-com movie in print-- the meet cute, the montages, the falling out, the making up... this story had it all.  Saoirse doesn't believe that love lasts; not after watching what has happened with her own parents and her first failed relationship.  She's determined to stay single... until she meets Ruby.  Ruby convinces Saoirse to plan one summer of fun using rom-com montage scenes to create their own romance without strings of forever.  I thought I might have a hard time reading about romantic love between two females (not having that frame of reference myself) but I found it to be such a sweet story.  After all love is love.  

3. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling-- My boys and I have been reading through the entire Harry Potter series over the last year or two and we finally finished it up this month.  In the last book of the series Harry and his friends are hunting down horcruxes so they can take down Voldemort for good. 

4. Finding Christmas by Karen Schaler-- Once my boys and I finished up our book on CD last month I realized that I spent over 40 minutes a day in the car by myself each day and that I should give audiobooks a try for myself.  I'm still struggling a bit with not tuning out the story when I hit traffic or start thinking of my to do list but I'm getting better and this story is one that I can easily pick back up after a bit of brain fog. Emmie LOVES Christmas and creates a fun holiday scavenger hunt for her boyfriend Grant who is less than enthusiastic about the holiday.  Sam is a writer struggling from writer's block nearly a year after his sister's death.  When he finds Emmie's clues he thinks they're from his editor to help him get over his writer's block.  Both are shocked when the wrong person turns up at the end.  It was cute and cheesy in that Hallmark movie kind of way but just perfect for not losing the storyline!

5. The Little Cafe by the Lake by Joanne Tracey-- Another cute story featuring a return of some of my favorite characters from her previous novels.  Richie and Max are about to have their baby, Jess and Nathan seemed to have worked out a solution to their long distance relationship problems, and all their respective family members seem to be settling down too.  Then a stranger shows up in town and threatens to reveal secrets that could throw Richie's whole family into turmoil. 

6. The Santa Suit by Mary Kay Andrews-- Another fun and light Christmas story!  When Ivy buys an old farmhouse sight unseen she may have gotten more than she bargained for.  She arrives to find the house fully furnished with everything in the cabinets and closets too.. including an old Santa suit.  She finds a note inside the suit and becomes curious about the story of the family.  She tries to track them down all these years later and along the way makes new friends in her new town. 

7. The Hope Chest by Carolyn Brown-- I almost put this book aside after the 2nd or 3rd chapter but something kept me reading a chapter a day and by the time I reached chapter 8 I was really into the story.  Flynn, Nessa, and April are cousins who have been left their grandmother's house under the stipulation that they all spent time working together to complete one last hand stitched quilt their Nana Lucy left unfinished.  At first the cousins are rather surly with each other but as they begin to get to know one another and reveal secrets and truths about their various childhoods they realize that they all need some healing and someone to call family. 

8. Game On: Tempting Twenty- Eight (Stephanie Plum book #28) by Janet Evanovich-- I love the Stephanie Plum series and read this book in just 24 hours.  Stephanie and Lula are teaming up with Diesel to take down a cyber criminal known as Oswald.  With assorted other messy takedowns of skips, the usual explosions and mayhem, and the help of Ranger and Stephanie's wacky family it was another fun read.

 

9. Under the Southern Sky by Kristy Woodson Harvey-- I have been waiting for this book to come in through my library for what seems like forever.  I enjoyed it so much too!  Amelia is covering a story on infertility when she sees her childhood's friend and wife's name on a form of embryos that have been labeled as "abandoned."  Parker is still grieving over the loss of his wife 3 years later; reading through old journals she has left behind. When he heard about the embryos he decides he wants to use a surrogate to have his wife's baby.  The story really takes off from there and I found these two to be such sweet characters. Both reeling from losses and life changes they find hope in their friendship. 

10. Christmas Cupcake Murder by Joanne Fluke-- I was really happy to realize that this book is part of a series; it reminds me a bit of the Cupcake Bakery Mysteries that I just caught up to at the beginning of the month so I have another fun series of murder mysteries set around a baking aficionado complete with recipes!  When Hannah and her mother stumble upon a body in an old building they are so relieved to find that he's sill alive!  Only problem is that even after medical treatment John Doe can't remember who he is or where he came from.  He does know he doesn't like the name John and asks to be called Joe.  Determined to get to the bottom of the mystery Hannah and her friends all pitch in to help Joe regain his memory.

11. Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan-- Polly and her fiancé Huckle live in an old lighthouse on a spit of land called Mount Polbearne.  Running the Beach Street Bakery is a labor of love for Polly but she's really looking forward to a quiet, lazy, cozy Christmas at home with just Huckle and the puffin that seems to have adopted them as family.  However, things don't turn out quite that way.  With demanding friends, an unexpected family member turning up, and her best friend about to give birth, Polly's holiday season is busier than ever. 

12. In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren-- Another book I've been wanting to read that I just could not get through my library last winter; this one was worth the wait. First off I enjoy the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray and this book reminds me of it-- just set at Christmas.  Mae and her family have always celebrated Christmas at a cabin in Utah with her parents' friends from college and their families.  It's a tradition she usually enjoys but everything seems to be going wrong this year. When they are heading back to the airport after their disappointing trip, Mae makes a wish that the universe will show her what will make her happy... just before the car crashes and everything goes dark.  Mae gasps awake to find herself on the plane on her way to Utah to celebrate Christmas...again!  And so it goes over and over.  I've only read two other books by Christina Lauren and enjoying this third book by her makes me want to start reading through them all! 

13. Dear Santa by Debbie Macomber-- This was such a cute story! Lindy is spending two weeks at home with her parents for the Christmas holiday and the break is just what she needs.  After a difficult few months at work and with her old boyfriend, Lindy is looking to relax.  Her mother hands her a box of old letters Lindy wrote to Santa and encourages her daughter to believe again in the magic of Christmas. Lindy reconnects with an old school friend and former classmate.  She feels her Christmas spirit returning in no time. 

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