What I Read in December & January and Share Your Shelf #10

 Marilyn, Jennifer, Tanya, and I are so happy to be hosting this monthly link up (that goes live on the first Thursday of every month) dedicated solely to books and book reviews. Through this link up I've gotten lots of great ideas on what books to read next!

Since I was gone for the whole second half of the month of December, I never got around to sharing what I read in December at last month's party. So this month I am sharing 2 whole months worth of books. Those I read in both December and January! 

Combined I read/listened to over 20 books during this 2 month span!

December:

1. James by Percival Everett-- I enjoyed the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn when I read it in high school so when I heard that this was a reimagining of the story told from the enslaved Jim's point of view I was intrigued. I really enjoyed listening to this one my Libby app and thought it was a great and very different story. 

2. After the Storm (Kate Burkholder #7) by Linda Castillo-- When a giant Tornado hits town, Kate Burkholder is first on the scene to look for survivors and help clean up the rubble. A scout troop finds a skull near an old barn that the storm unearthed and Kate finds herself working on solving an old mystery. I always enjoy these books and I was SO sure I knew who did it this time.. but I didn't!  

3. Home is Where the Bodies Are by Jeneva Rose-- another fun Libby listen with a full cast of characters (I just love when there are different voices reading the different parts!). Beth, Nicole, and Michael are reunited after nearly 7 years apart when their mom dies. Then they find a VHS tape that shows a body/potential murder, one that it looks like their parents might have covered up. The only thing I thought was a bit odd was that the dead mom narrated through VHS and journals but yet we heard and learned waaay more than would have been recorded on tape or in her journals. But other than that I thought it was a really neat concept. I enjoyed it even if I did figure out what happened long before the big reveal. 

4. The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz-- I wasn't sure I was going to like this novel at first since I had a hard time liking either of the main characters and found the first person account a bit weird in style but it really grew on me! The main character, Anthony is a writer who has agreed to follow an old disgraced police detective, Daniel Hawthorne, around with the promise of writing a novel they can split 50/50. The crime is intriguing as an old woman who went to a funeral parlor to plan her own funeral winds up dead just hours later.  There is a huge cast of suspects and Anthony gets annoyed at Hawthorne and his reluctance to share any thoughts or tidbits which makes writing a novel rather tricky. 

5. The Cinnamon Bun Book Store by Laurie Gilmore (Dream Harbor book #2) -- A very cute book focusing on Hazel and her bookstore. In this book Hazel has noticed some weird messages being left behind in books and she ropes Noah into helping her figure out the mystery while also helping her sow  a few wild oats (like riding a Ferris wheel and going to the beach) before she turns 30. These two were just adorable! 

6. Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez-- Oh gosh I just loved this sweet story! I had no idea it was part of a series until I went to link it up for this wrap- up so it absolutely reads as a stand alone novel but these characters were so adorable. Poor Briana is struggling after facing a year of divorce and betrayal by her husband and finding out her younger brother desperately needs a new kidney but no one in the family is a match, now the job she's been looking forward to has been delayed. Meanwhile Jacob's year isn't going much better and with a new job where everyone seems to hate him his anxiety is at an all time high. But because of said anxiety he can't seem to get out of his own way to make friends, until he writes a letter to Briana and soon the two are exchanging letters back and forth. 

7. If the Shoe Fits (Meant to Be #1) by Julie Murphy-- Cindy is home from college and facing a creative block when someone suggests she takes part in her step-mother's reality TV show with her two step-sisters. The After Midnight show is much like The Bachelor and Cindy is competing as a plus size woman against a bunch of model types for the bachelor's heart. Turns out the bachelor is the guy Cindy met on the plane ride home from New York and the two had hit it off fairly well. Refusing to play any games or bow down to any social norms Cindy goes on the show as herself and creates quite a stir. It was a really cute and fun read and supposed to be based loosely on the Cinderella story. 

8. Healing the Baby Surgeon's Heart by Tessa Scott-- My mother in law gave me this book since the author lives right down the road from us and she's the one who gave the book to my mother in law. It was really cute! Claire is a neo-natal surgeon who lost her own baby shortly after her husband walked out on her and is struggling with whether or not she's capable of continuing her job. She heads away to Ireland to clear her head and think but meets Kiernan and gets pulled into an emergency delivery, and is talked into attempting a possible life-changing surgery for a mom who has no other hope. 

9. By the Book (Meant to Be #2) by Jasmine Guillory-- Izzy is working for a publishing company but her dream job isn't turning out to be all she thought it would be. So when her boss mentions that someone should go talk to the famous Beau Towers and encourage him to get that memoir finished, Izzy volunteers. She finds out she's in over her head when she shows up at his house to give him a pep talk.. but the two soon learn to work together and I'm sure it's no surprise that they soon find themselves drawn to one another. It was a really adorable Beauty and the Beast- esque story. 

10. Kiss the Girl (Meant to Be #3) by Zoraida Cordova-- When Ariel meets Eric she's had it with her father who has controlled every aspect of her and her sisters' lives. When Eric offers Ariel a job on the road with him and his band, Ariel sees a way out from under her father's rule. Only problem is that both Eric and Ariel have strong feelings for one another but know that any sort of relationship can really mess up both their jobs... well, that and the fact that Eric has no idea who Ariel really is. Eager to leave her old life behind, Ariel hides behind a lot of 1/2 truths and though she feels guilty keeping secrets from Eric she's just not ready to share everything. It was a really cute re-take of The Little Mermaid! 

11. How to Read a Book by Monica Wood-- I listened to this audiobook on all our plane rides home from Hawaii. Violet is in prison for a drunk driving crash that killed a teacher where she partakes in a lively book discussion group. Told from multiple points of view-- Violet, who is being released/ learning to navigate on "the outs," Harriet, the retired librarian running the book club, & Frank, the man who's wife Violet killed. It was a really enjoyed this hope filled book about second chances and forgiveness. 

January:

1. Tangled Up In You (Meant to Be #4) by Christina Lauren-- Another adorable modern day fairy tale. Ren is 22 and has hardly ever left her family farm. Homeschooled since birth and raised by parents that deeply distrust the outside world and most technology, Ren is heading off to college on a full scholarship. She's eager and scared and had to make a million promises to her parents just to get their permission to go. Once at school she makes quite a splash but the one person she keeps running into is Fitz. Fitz, the boy who so badly wants to be the best, the boy who has been keeping secrets from everyone. When the two are thrown together on a cross-country road trip they learn more about each other and themselves than they ever imagined. 

2. Worth Fighting For (Meant To be book #5) by Jesse Q. Sutanto-- Another fabulous addition to the Meant to Be Series that will be releasing June 3, 2025. I received this book from NetGalley for my honest opinion and was thrilled to have a chance to read it. I enjoy most of Jesse Q. Sutanto's books and this modern day fairly tale adaptation was so fun to read. Now, Mulan is not my favorite Disney story but this modern day remake was great! Fa Mulan has been a woman working in a man's world for quite some time so she's got the skills to put all those finance bro's she works with in their place but when her father falls ill in the middle of a corporate acquisition, Mulan is pretty sure she has what it takes to step in. Then she discovers that the company in question is known for their ultra manly whiskey brand and would rather work with her father. Knowing that the companies leaders have only conversed with her father Fa Zhou through email, Mulan pretends to be Zhou-- an ultra successful & powerful CEO.  But then she's invited to the family ranch and a week of cattle herding, sheep sheering, horseback riding, and more has her re-thinking her strategy.  Especially when Shang and Mulan find it harder and harder to ignore the sparks flying between them.  

3. Rock, Paper, Scissors by Alice Feeney-- I listened to this psychological thriller on my Libby app and was really enjoying it a lot but about 80% of the way in when the plot twist was revealed I found myself questioning everything I thought I had known. I was a bit lost for a chapter or two as my brain tried to catch up. Told in alternating voices between Amelia, Adam, and a mysterious stranger later revealed. Amelia and Adam have won a trip to celebrate their anniversary but things are very rocky in their marriage and then they arrive to find a very spooky chapel in the woods that has been turned into a home of sorts-- but the snow storm and the power outage and their animosity towards one another leads the reader to think this is really NOT a good weekend away at all. The more strange things happen and as the stranger enters the story the weirder it gets... I  wanted to like it so much but I just didn't at all. I was left with so many questions and this sense of "oh come on!" where I just could not suspend my disbelief. 

4. Love, Naturally (Rock Bottom Love #1) by Sophie Sullivan-- After reading book 2 in this series in November, I decided to grab book 1 from my library. It was just as cute as the first book. In this one, Presley Adams was hoping to surprise her boyfriend with a lovely vacation to the Get Lost Lodge... only he dumps her and Presley decides to take the vacation alone. While camping and the outdoors and nature aren't necessarily her thing she figures there must be something fun to do to get away from her life for a bit. Beckett Keller has set aside the summer to help his brother whip the lodge into shape but the to do list never seems to end. But he finds himself drawn to this gorgeous woman who seems so out of place at the family lodge. 

5.Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher-- I love a good memoir and not knowing much about Carrie Fisher at all beyond her roll as princess Leia, I thought this might be worth the 3 hour listen. In all honesty if the book wasn't so short I would definitely not have bothered finishing it. She admits that she wrote this book shortly after had EST (electroshock therapy) and at times I did feel like she was all over the place and I wasn't really sure what I was listening to. 

 6. Offbeat North America by Lonely Planet-- Now I fully admit I did not read this book cover to cover but I did read the intro and many of the suggested places listed for those states that I have been to and/or plan to visit. I found it very informative and the photos that accompanied each section really made me want to visit more "off the beaten path" kinds of places... something I think my family is already pretty good at. We tend to shy away from crowded touristy places or else try to visit when crowds are at their lowest for the most part. In fact, a few of the places they've mentioned we've already been to!

7. The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys & Steve Sheinkin-- I love all of Ruta's books and was thrilled to see this latest collaboration. This was a slightly different story since it was a middle grade fiction and not young adult like most of her other works but I still enjoyed it a lot. 19 year old Jakob Novis and his little sister Lizzie enjoy puzzles and riddles. The two find themselves living at Bletchley park during WWII. Jakob working to break the Enigma cipher while Lizzie decides to try and unravel the mystery of what happened to their mother. But as things heat up it starts to look like somehow their mother's disappearance could be related to the Enigma cipher and both Lizzie and Jakob must work together. 

8. Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn-- This was such a fun listen on Libby! These 4 women Mary Alice, Helen, Natalie, and Billie, have worked as assassins for The Museum for over 40 years and are shocked when someone tries to kill them at their own retirement cruise. Now the 4 are on the run and trying to figure out who inside their old company has marked them for death. It kind of reminded me of Golden Girls meets James Bond; which was how it was marketed and it did not disappoint. 

9. Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez-- I had to go back and read book 1 after reading book 2 last month. In this book, Alexis is caught off guard by her attraction to Daniel, a man 10 year younger than her and as far different from her as possible. Alexis has always tried to live up the impossible standards set by her family and their circle of friends but Daniel is an honest, hard working, small town man with so many wonderful attributes that Alexis can't help falling in love with him. But unwilling to leave her world behind and unable to move Daniel away from his the two seem destined to be miserable and alone. It was a pretty heart-wrenching story and at times I found myself so angry with Alexis and her inability to stand up for herself and what she truly wanted. I knew somehow they'd both get their happy ending but it was frustrating at times waiting for them to get there. I really enjoyed and liked these two characters!  

10. The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin-- Okay so I shortened up the official title a lot but can you really blame me? It's a LOOOONG title! However, Amy recommended this book and I had to give it a go. I have been finding "joy in the journey" since I began homeschooling boys many, many years ago. In fact, I may have swung so far onto the happiness side that I've been neglecting many of "my tasks" like cooking, cleaning, etc. and ONLY focusing on joy. Which means I'll happily not clean the house to head out on a hike, and I'll gladly ignore the laundry to work on a puzzle or a painting. But at the same time I struggle each winter with major apathy and lethargy and figured this book might be the kick I needed to get going. It wasn't but I still enjoyed it anyway.. a lot of what she said reminded me of some of the best times in our lives-- embarking on the 52 brand new we did a few years in a row, our say yes day/week/month/ year, the many, many projects and photos and reminders of family fun we have all around us. 

11. The Honeymoon Crashers by Christina Lauren-- Just a short 4 hours listen; this book was pretty cute though I really didn't enjoy the narration and sound effects. I really enjoyed the Un-Honeymooners and this was basically a short story with all the same characters. It's  been 4 years since Amy's wedding ended with everyone but her twin sister and the best man getting food poisoning. The two fell in love on their fake honeymoon and are now ready to get married themselves. Amy is determined to throw them the perfect last- minute Maui wedding and wasn't counting on help from Brody, Ethan's best man. 

I started a book challenge for the new year too!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Linking up with: Thinking Out Loud,