Yesterday we talked about the books we got in the last month of 2021. How did we finish out our reading year? We won’t get too much into talking about the whole year, because we’ll be posting a summary of our 2021 reading and goals soon. But first let’s see what we read last month and if we discovered any new favorites!

Candyce

December ended up turning out to be a better reading month than I was expecting. After being sick at the beginning of the month and just pretty busy I ended up reading more than I expected. That’s mostly because of audiobooks on my commute to work, haha. I ended up reading 16 books (6 audiobooks, 5 arcs, 4 e-books, and 1 paperback). My average rating was a 3.7, so there were definitely more disappointments than normal. Let’s see what I read.

The Replacement Crush – Lisa Brown Roberts

I’ve been wanting to read The Replacement Crush since I heard about it a few years ago. It was so much fun! There were some issues at the end and how certain things were skipped over that I would’ve liked to have seen resolved. Other than that I flew through this book.

The Holiday Swap – Maggie Knox

The Holiday Swap was such a fun holiday read. Was it predictable in many ways? Yes! Did that take away from the enjoyment? Not at all! I loved Charlie and Cass switching places and really think about what they wanted in life. The romance was a lot of fun, but I loved that it wasn’t the most important aspect of the story.

The Witch Haven – Sasha Peyton Smith

The Witch Haven released in August and I’ve been wanting to make progress with my ARC.  I ended up buddy reading this one with a friend. I did enjoy the atmosphere and the story, but the beginning was really slow and I didn’t get all of the background information I was hoping for. The ending gets very intense though.

A History of Wild Places – Shea Ernshaw

A History of Wild Places was such a surprise. I went into this book expecting a dark atmospheric book and I definitely got that. Did I guess the twist? Yes. Also, the ending went a bit fast for me, but other than that I was so invested in this story. Shea Ernshaw created such an interesting set of characters and events.

Duke, Actually – Jenny Holiday

Duke, Actually was my swoonalong read for this month and it was just as fun as I was hoping! This book had me laughing and smiling throughout most of the book. Max and Dani are an unlikely couple, but they were so much fun. This is definitely a slow-burn romance, but worth every minute. There were a couple of things near the ending that didn’t sit well for me, but all in all a great holiday read.

The Fine Print – Lauren Asher

The Fine Print was a romance I saw all over bookstagram and TikTok. The main characters work for Dreamland (basically what we know as Disneyland). I read a couple chapters here and there so it took longer before I finished this 400+ page romance, but I loved these characters and their romance. I can’t wait for the next book in this series.

The Naughty, the Nice and the Nanny & Three Bells, Two Bows and One Brother’s Best Friend – Willa Nash

Willa Nash (aka Devney Perry) wrote 3 holiday novellas and each features a Holiday brother. I read the first two and they’re less than 200 pages. They made me laugh, they’re steamy, and the characters are a lot of fun. The only thing that bugged me was that both books had a bit of drama that felt like it was put there just to create drama. I would’ve enjoyed them just a bit more without that.

The Mistletoe Motive – Chloe Liese

The Mistletoe Motive was so much fun to read! I read the whole thing with a smile on my face. The enemies to lovers romance is more than meets the eye and I wished I had even more of Gabby and Jonathan. This book’s setting is a bookstore most of the time. What more could you ask for?

You’ll Be the Death of Me – Karen M. McManus

Karen M. McManus has written a few YA thrillers and the newest one is You’ll Be the Death of Me. It was a fastpaced read as usual, but it wasn’t my favorite one she’s written. She uses the same formula and while that isn’t bad it’s not always as exciting.

It Won’t Be Christmas Without You – Beth Reekles

It Won’t Be Christmas Without You was a book I was really looking forward to (even though it took me quite some time to finally pick up), but in the end I was really disappointed. I read a review saying that they were expecting a lighthearted cozy read and basically got a lot of drama. I have to agree. Both characters complained most of the book and I didn’t really get must festive cheer until the last couple of chapters.

All I Want for Christmas is the Girl Next Door & All I Want for Christmas is the Girl in Charge – Chelsea Bobulski

I recently saw that these were available on Storytel and pretty short, so I thought they’d be fun to add to my holiday reading list. All I Want for Christmas is the Girl Next Door didn’t work for me at all. While I liked the concept the whole love triangle and how the main character acted at times wasn’t something I deal with. All I Want for Christmas is the Girl in Charge was more of what I was looking for and I enjoyed that one so much more.

Window Shopping – Tessa Bailey

As soon as I saw this cover I knew I wanted to read Window Shopping. I listened to the audiobook. I loved the concept and the characters were interesting, but this book was just a tad too smutty for me. I definitely understand the love for this book though.

The Christmas Bookshop – Jenny Colgan

Okay, how could I not pick up a book called The Christmas Bookshop? I’ve read books by Jenny Colgan before and loved her holiday books, so I was very excited. Unfortunately, this one fell flat for me. I didn’t connect with the characters and the POV changes were really abrupt and made it hard to follow at times. Also, the first love interest was so annoying!

Archie Vol. 1 – Mark Waid & Fiona Staples

Okay, so this is a graphic novel, but I listened to an audiobook of it. They have graphic audios that are more movies than anything. There are sound effects and a full cast. It was really interesting to listen to. I’ll still read my physical graphic novel, but this was a lot of fun.

Summary:
Favorite Book: A History of Wild Places
Least Favorite: It Won’t Be Christmas Without You
Most Surprising: A History of Wild Places

 

Isabelle

December was a decent reading month for me! I think it was pretty average if you look at the rest of my reading year haha. In the end I ended up reading 6 books; 3 audiobooks, two eARC’s and a graphic novel. With an average rating of 4 I think I did okay at the end of the year haha. Let’s take a look!

You’ll Be The Death Of Me – Karen McManus

I totally have to agree with Candyce on this one. It was enjoyable but Karen does follow the same formula in most of her books and that made it a bit less fun for me. I would love to be surprised by her again!

The Great Hunt – Robert Jordan

This is the second book in the Wheel of Time series and I’m so happy I finally started this series. At this point I’m already listening to book 3 and I can’t wait to read the rest of the series. The books are huge as is the world and I love discovering more and more of it.

The Mystwick School for Musicraft & Camp Cacophony – Jessica Khoury

These were my other 2 audiobooks this month. They are included with my Audible subscription and were a lot of fun! I really liked the world but will say the plot was quite predictable. However, I will definitely read the second book when it releases next year.

Fangs – Sarah Andersen

This was one of my Christmas presents, as you might have seen yesterday. And I immediately read it haha. It was super fast, very cute and overall just super enjoyable. I definitely want to look at it some more and I’m happy I have it in my collection.

Chef’s Kiss – Hank Jones & Jarrett Melendez

My last eARC of the year! And my second 2022 book. This is a super cute graphic novel and I enjoyed it a whole lot. It was everything I thought it would be haha. I would’ve loved it if it was a little bit longer or if there was a second book but the story did wrap up nicely.

Summary:
Favorite Book: The Great Hunt
Least Favorite: You’ll Be the Death of Me
Most Surprising: The Mystwick School for Musicraft

 

So that’s what we read in the last month of December! Have you read any of the same books we did? What did you think? Or did you discover any new favorites? Let us know in the comments! We’d love to hear from you!